Top 10 Life Insurance Myths

Life insurance is complex, and there is no one-size-fits-all advice. Don’t let misunderstandings stop you from choosing the right coverage.”

 

Life Insurance. Those two words bring up a number of questions to the average person. We are pretty sure we need it, but we aren’t always sure exactly how much we need, what type we need, how it affects our taxes, and which companies are the best to choose from.

A recent MSN Money news article explains why having a good handle on this information is so important.

“Life insurance is not a simple product. Even term life policies have many elements that must be considered carefully in order to arrive at the proper type and amount of coverage. But the technical aspects of life insurance are far less difficult for most people to deal with than trying to get a handle on how much coverage they need and why.”

The article breaks down some of the more common life insurance questions and gives simple and concise answers to 10 Life Insurance Myths. (Click here for the full article  http://money.msn.com/health-and-life-insurance/top-10-life-insurance-myths)

We have chosen five of these Myths to discuss on our Blog today.

Myth: If I’m single and don’t have dependents, I don’t need coverage.

Even single people should have at least enough life insurance to cover the costs of personal debts, medical and funeral bills. If you are uninsured, you may leave a legacy of unpaid expenses for your family or executor to deal with. Plus, this can be a good way for low-income singles to leave a legacy to a favorite charity or other cause.

Myth: My life insurance coverage needs to be twice my annual salary.

The amount of life insurance you need depends on your specific situation. There are many factors to consider. In addition to paying medical and funeral bills, you may need to pay off your mortgage and provide for your family for several years. A cash-flow analysis can help determine the amount of insurance you need.

Myth: My term life insurance coverage at work is sufficient.

Maybe, maybe not. For a single person of modest means, employer-paid or -provided term coverage may actually be enough. But if you have a spouse or dependents, or know that you will need coverage upon your death to pay estate taxes, then additional coverage may be necessary.

Myth: Only breadwinners need life insurance coverage.

Nonsense. The cost of replacing the services formerly provided by a deceased homemaker can be higher than you think, and insuring against the loss of a homemaker may make sense, to compensate for cleaning and child-care costs.

Myth: I’m better off investing my money than buying life insurance.

Not True. Until the value of your assets exceeds your debt, you need life coverage of some sort. Once you amass $1 million of liquid assets, you can consider discontinuing (or at least reducing) your million-dollar policy. But you take a big chance when you depend solely on your investments in the early years of your adult life, especially if you have dependents. If you die without coverage, there may be no means to provide for them after your current assets are depleted.

The Bottom line is that there are many, many misconceptions about Life Insurance. Considering how vitally important it is to understand such a critical part of financial planning, the best option is to seek advice from a Licensed Advisor.

As one of our previous articles has explained, the right Financial Advisor can guide you in your decision making process, completely free of charge!

Cornerstone has these such representatives at branches across the Nation, who will visit you in your home for a financial analysis at your convenience.

Another article on MSN Money gave a great comparison of the best A-rated insurance companies around. (http://money.msn.com/life-insurance/best-life-insurance-companies.aspx) Cornerstone is proud to work in affiliation with many of the companies featured in the article, plus more than 150 other top-rated Insurance providers.

Contact us today, set up a free Financial consultation, and make sure that you are on top of your responsibility to stay educated about your options in this ever-changing industry.

Making a Retirement Budget

Believe it or not, a retirement budget leads to more fun in retirement! In addition, making a retirement budget helps you avoid one of the biggest retirement mistakes people make – which is spending too much too soon.”

Quoted above is an except from an about.com, Money over 55, article. (View full article here- http://moneyover55.about.com/od/budgetingsaving/a/How-To-Make-A-Retirement-Budget.htm)

Why is making a retirement budget so important? There are many factors that you may end up having no control over when it comes to retirement income, such as when you retire, your Social Security, and the rate of inflation. The one thing you CAN control is your personal spending.

It seems as though many retirees throw the budget out the window when they finally have that retirement check coming in, and unwise or excessive spending can end up being a huge detriment if the retirement funds are not covering what is leaving your bank account.

Others haven’t had to budget in many years and are used to living comfortably without much worry for the balance on their credit card. This can all change when you are suddenly on a fixed income.

The wise course of action is to look at your spending habits now and see where you can start adjusting and adapting to make a smooth transition into retired life.

This type of planning is not difficult and can be started with only a few hours of time, but it’s easy to put off. Why not start working on it today?

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Your last 6 to 12 months worth of bank account statements
  • Your last 6 to 12 months worth of credit card statements
  • Last two paystubs for you (and your spouse if you are married)
  • 10-12 colored highlighters
  • Last year’s tax return

Use the information on the items above to see where your money has been going and use the highlighters to group expenses into categories.

Above referenced article gives 5 steps to using this information to create your retirement budget.

STEP 1 – Make a list of all your fixed or required monthly obligations.

To make a super effective retirement budget, break this list down into three parts:

  • Essentials: This includes expenses that cover food, clothing, housing, transportation and health care.
  • Non-essential monthly obligations: Although we all may think of cable TV as an essential, it is not. Non-essentials are things like cable, cell phone, gym memberships, subscriptions and other items you receive bills for.
  • Required non-monthly expenses: Items like property taxes, insurance premiums, auto registration and home warranties may come up once a year. Be sure to take these periodic expenses and calculate their cost on a monthly basis and include it in your retirement budget.

STEP 2 – Research your costs for health care before and after retirement.

  • Get estimates from your employer, from AARP sponsored health plans, for from an independent health insurance agent (Cornerstone has over 75 Licensed Representatives across the Nation) so you have accurate idea of these costs by expected retirement age. Account for these costs on your after-retirement budget.

STEP 3 – List all your flexible or optional expenses.

  • This all the fun stuff, like travel, hobbies, sports and entertainment.

STEP 4 – Write down some thoughts on how you want to spend your time in retirement.

  • Ask your spouse to do this also. Think about the things you want to be able to spend money on in retirement. Begin to think about changes you may be willing to make that would reallocate money from items that are less important to items that are more important.

STEP 5 – Calculate Fixed verses Flex

  • Total all your expenses.
  • Total all your fixed expenses separately.
  • Divide your fixed expenses into your total expenses.

How much of your retirement income will go toward fixed expenses? Does this align with your thoughts in Step 4 on how you want to spend your time in retirement?

The About.com article concludes with the following thought: “As a general rule of thumb, if you want more fun in retirement, find ways to lower fixed expenses so you can have more flex to spend on the hobbies and interests you most enjoy!”

Cornerstone Representatives are trained to help you make the most of your retirement in a number of different ways. Are you possibly paying too much for your health or life insurance as mentioned in step 2? Are your investments giving you all the earnings they could? Our agents are available, free of charge to answer these types of questions for you. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you would like help in planning your retirement budget!