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Your life insurance monthly premium can start looking less and less appealing once you've retired. It's a scenario Dan Simon, a retirement planning adviser with Daniel A. White & Associates in Middletown, Del., has seen quite often, even with his own parents. "The cost of the insurance had risen to the point where it was getting unaffordable. They were wondering do we really need to keep this coverage now that the kids are all grown up?"
If you stop paying your premiums, you lose your life insurance coverage, and your heirs wouldn't get anything back for what you've paid in. If you cancel a policy that has cash value, a reserve of money built up in some types of life insurance, the insurer sends you a check for that amount, though it will be far less than the listed death benefit.
Over the past 20 years, a third option went mainstream: selling your policy to a company, a practice known as a life settlement, with the buyer getting the death benefit when you die.
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"It's kind of morbid when you think about it. A group buys boatloads of policies from people that have fallen on hard times and can no longer afford their insurance," profiting from the seller's death, says Simon. "In theory, they want you to die tomorrow. If you live another 20 years, it's a bad investment for them."
Selling a life insurance policy generally isn't a great deal for you either, and there are better alternatives worth exploring. Simon finds that people typically turn to selling a policy when they're desperate. Usually, it's because they've spent down their other retirement assets, or they might be dealing with high medical bills. "It's a measure of last resort, like taking a reverse mortgage. I rarely see them working out well for people, and they could en
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It's no surprise that many people who inherit millions of dollars are uncertain about what to do with their newfound wealth. The possibilities of becoming a multimillionaire overnight can be overwhelming, especially during a period when most are grieving the loss of a parent or other loved one.
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I often work with people in many different age groups who have suddenly become wealthy as the result of a windfall inheritance. While there is a need to develop a comprehensive financial plan, it's not the first step. Instead, I try to determine each person's starting point with money. Many people fall into one of three categories:
They are anticipating how they will handle their wealth, but the money hasn't yet arrived.They have their inheritance — often several million dollars — but they are still grieving the loss of a loved one and are looking for guidance on next steps.
The inheritance has been in their bank account for a long period, but they still lack direction and can't make any decisions.
It is important to listen to each person's personal story with a windfall of money. Losing an important person in your life is difficult, and reflecting on the impact that person made is just as important. Many people express a desire to do something to honor a parent's wishes.
Figuring out how to make the best use of an inheritance
Here is how I generally approach these conversations to help a person make the best use of their inheritance:
Define their relat
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