TERMdog.com, Digging up savings!

When you are drowning in debt…

that is when you need term life insurance the most. Here’s why…

During these trying economic times, many Americans are asking, “Where’s my bailout?”

The government now owns General Motors and has spent trillions of dollars rescuing AIG and banks like Countrywide, but it is still up to each of use to create our own family bailout plan.

Term life insurance is an essential part of your family’s bailout plan. When times are tough, that is when you truly need the essential safety net that life insurance provides.

Over many years in the insurance industry, I’ve counseled hundreds of families who were in debt. Some of them were having severe financial problems and even considering bankruptcy. One of the things I’ve learned is that when you are drowning in debt, that is when the need for term life insurance is the greatest.

When the economy is booming, many families have generous savings accounts, a number of investments including their 401k, stocks and bonds. Often, both spouses are working. They have plenty of equity in their homes and may have other assets such as expensive cars or fine jewelry that they can sell if necessary.

A family in that position needs term life insurance, but they are in a far better position than a debt-ridden family. They have good credit that can tide them over – at least for a short while — if tragedy strikes. They can raise cash or raid the savings account if they must, or take out a home equity loan.

All of those alternatives disappear when families are deep in debt.

When times are tough, one spouse may be unemployed. Jobs are hard to find in this economy, and good jobs are even harder to find. Families are less likely to have extensive savings. Their 401k accounts may already have been tapped for emergencies. If the breadwinner passes away, the loss of income combined with financial pressures can be catastrophic.

The debt-ridden family needs the safety net that term life insurance provides, more than ever. When times are tough, the relatively small amount of money spent on term life provides a world of security for your family.

We all know that we should have health insurance all the time, but especially when we are sick. By the same token, term life insurance is always important – but especially so when we are facing debt or financial problems.

Don’t delay – take this important step to protect your family by purchasing affordable, hassle-free life term insurance coverage today at www.termdog.com.

The definition of insurance is to shift the economic risk of an occurrence to another party. Auto insurance shifts the risk associated with a car accident. Homeowner’s insurance shifts the risk associated with a fire, hurricane, flood or other home-related catastrophe. Life insurance shifts the risk of the financial devastation left by a person’s death.

In What is the Best Life Insurance Policy?, we briefly discuss the different types of life insurance: whole life insurance, universal life insurance, variable life insurance and term life insurance. Now, let’s look specifically at the advantages and disadvantages of term life insurance.

Term life insurance is the purest form of life insurance. Here’s the deal… if you die during the policy coverage period (or “term”), the insurance company will send a check for the contractually agreed upon death benefit to your beneficiaries. If you don’t die during this period, typically you receive no benefit (we’ll discuss an exception later). That’s it. It’s pretty simple.

However, there are different types of term life insurance (just to complicate things!). There is ten year term, twenty year term, thirty year term, annual renewable term, decreasing term and return of premium term life insurance. We’ll look at each type, but first let’s discuss how a premium is calculated.

Insurance companies use very bright people called actuaries to calculate the amount of premiums that must be charged so the insurance company can pay death claims and still make a profit. The actuary does this by using an enormous amount of data and statistical probabilities. If the insurance company knows the statistical probability of, for example, a 40-year-old healthy female dying in the next 10 years (and it is a very small probability), they can calculate a premium to meet their goals. Common sense would tell you that the probability of a 50-year-old dying would be higher than that of a 40-year-old, so logically, the premium would be higher for the older person wanting the same amount of insurance.

Ten, twenty and thirty year term life insurance policies are called “level term” policies because the annual premium is the same for the entire period of coverage. You can purchase a tremendous amount of insurance for very little premium if you are young and in good health. This works well for a young couple with small children where the death of either spouse would leave the surviving spouse with a stressful and difficult financial situation.

Annual renewable term life insurance is basically a “one year at a time” policy where the premium increases for each year of coverage. This is usually used for a short-term need (1 to 5 years) such as collateral for a loan. Usually, the policy allows for coverage to age 80 or 85, but the annual cost becomes prohibitive as you age.

Decreasing term life insurance is typically sold as “mortgage protection” insurance or with some other emotional marketing pitch. The death benefit decreases annually to coincide with your decreasing mortgage balance (that is, if you have an amortized loan). There is nothing wrong with this type of product, but typically a good agent will discuss the overall coverage needs of the family, rather than just a policy to pay off a certain item.

As stated earlier, there is typically no benefit paid for term life insurance unless you die within the term period. There is one exception to this rule, however. Many companies now offer “return of premium” term life insurance. This means that if you don’t die during the coverage period, the insurance company will refund all of your premiums at the end of the term. Obviously, this type of policy will cost more than a traditional term life insurance policy. But if the idea of paying premiums with little probability of a benefit bothers you, this might be an option.

Many agents will tell you that permanent life insurance policies are the only type to buy. However, there are many factors that come into play in determining what type of policy is best for you. If getting the most coverage for the least amount of dollars for a certain period of time is your goal, term life insurance is probably the way to go.

Use our free online quote to find out how much life insurance will cost you and let TERMdog’s professional insurance advisors help you choose the right insurance policy for your needs.

If you’re just starting to look into getting a life insurance policy or if you’re reviewing your life insurance portfolio, the myriad of choices can be confusing.

Man is Mortal. That makes life insurance a little unique and interesting, doesn’t it? We purchase things like health insurance, car insurance and home insurance, then hope we never have a need to use them. Life insurance is different, because it’s a unavoidable fact that sooner or later, each of us will die.

So many choices. When it comes to life insurance, there are many options. What is the best life insurance policy? You may have heard terms like “whole life insurance,” “term insurance,” “universal life insurance” or “variable insurance.” What does it all mean? And what are the differences?

Well, first let me point out what they have in common: all life insurance policies provide payment to a beneficiary in the event of your death. Except for that basic tenet, the differences between policies can be major.

Let’s consider the basic differences in the types of life insurance policies:

Whole life insurance. This type of insurance covers your entire life (not just a portion or a “term” of it). It is considered permanent life insurance which is used to cover you for your “whole life.” Whole life insurance policies tend to cost more than “term” policies. This is because they grow what is known as “cash value,” and because after a time, you will be able to borrow against, or withdraw from, your whole life benefits to supplement your retirement. Most whole life insurance policies have guarantees on both the cash value and death benefits.

Term life insurance. Rather than covering your whole life, “term” insurance covers a pre-determined portion of your life. Common terms are ten, twenty and thirty years. If you die within that term, your beneficiaries receive a death benefit. If not, you typically receive nothing. To put it simply, term life insurance allows you to purchase more coverage for less money. Basically, you are betting on the probability of your death occurring within that specified “term.”

Variable life insurance. Variable life insurance is a permanent insurance. However, unlike whole life insurance, variable insurance allows you to invest the cash value of your policy in “subaccounts.” These can include money market funds, bonds or stocks. Variable insurance offers a bit of control, as the value and benefit depend upon the performance of the subaccounts you select. However, that means there could be significant risk involved. since the performance of your subaccounts cannot be guaranteed.

Universal life insurance. With universal life insurance, it all comes down to flexibility. This is permanent life insurance that provides access to cash values that build up tax-deferred. You can choose the amount of coverage you feel is appropriate, and you retain the ability to increase or decrease that amount as needs change (subject to minimums and requirements). You also have some flexibility in determining how much of your premium goes towards insurance, and how much is used within the policy’s savings element.

So, which life insurance policy is right for you?

Many factors come into play when deciding what type of life insurance will best suit your needs. The best way to learn what policy is right for you is to give us a call at 630-393-6500. It’s very quick and easy, so let us assist you in looking at all the factors and help you to find the right life insurance policy at the right price for your specific needs.

While many of my customers are concerned about the cost of life insurance, not everyone realizes the vast differences in individual life insurance companies.

Have you considered the financial strength of the life insurance company you plan to do business with?

What about their customer service?

Or their ability to answer any questions you may have about life insurance and your personal insurance needs?

If you purchased your life insurance policy through an Internet term life insurance quoting machine, or if you didn’t consider all of the factors involved when a life insurance company sets your premium, you may not have the right life insurance policy to meet your needs. But with some planning, you may be able to improve the life insurance policy you already own.

Let me tell you a dirty little secret about most online life insurance quoting websites… These sites want you to think that they can answer your questions such as “What is the average price of life insurance?” or “How much life insurance do I really need?”

In reality, what many of these life insurance websites are doing is simply selling your personal information to the first insurance agent who’ll pay their fee. And that means any agent.

The insurance agent who purchases your contact information may inexperienced or even unaware of all of the factors involved in determining the best life insurance policy and premium for you. And you could be the one to end up paying for that lack of experience and knowledge!

Insurance companies can have as many as eight different rate classes, and an additional ten substandard rate classes, that come into play when new clients approach them for life insurance quotes.

As an insurance adviser, I’ve found that most people who were quoted a life insurance premium from an agent without all of the pertinent facts were misquoted by as much as three to five rate classes. That creates a huge difference in your insurance costs!

That’s why it’s so important that many different factors be taken into consideration when your agent is preparing your life insurance quote. You deserve an insurance agent who will work diligently to meet your life insurance needs. Don’t settle for anything less.

Get started with your free life insurance quote or life insurance review right now, or call me at 630-393-6500.

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AT LAST……. Affordable Term Life Insurance

At TERMdog we understand that when you’re looking for an online term life insurance quote, you’re not looking for a hassle or a high-pressured sales pitch.

We understand that when you want a quote for term life insurance, you want a quick, simple solution to help you find the best price available in the easiest way possible.

And we understand that when you’re searching for a term life insurance quote online, you expect to accomplish all this through an easy-to-use, easy-to-navigate website that answers all your questions and provides excellent customer care.

That’s what we offer.

TERMdog provides you with a simple, no hassle, term life insurance quote to help you find the most affordable rate. We do this by comparing term life insurance policies and rates from the top companies. All with just a few keystrokes from you.

Not all term life insurance websites are owned and operated by insurance advisors like TERMdog is. Many are run only by Internet marketers and entrepreneurs who are simply trying to make a buck by selling insurance leads.

TERMdog is different.

Our decades of experience as insurance advisors and professionals promises you the best customer care you’ll find with any term life insurance company. But you don’t have to believe us. Read what some of our clients have to say.

We’re not here to pressure you or hassle you. We’re here to help. So browse the site. Learn more about us. Discover the companies we work with. Contact us if you have questions. Or fill out our simple online form for a free term life insurance quote.

Let TERMdog dig up your savings and prove to you we mean it when we say… We want to be Your Best Friend for Life.