Because Protecting Your Wealth Matters
Life Insurance
An Important Planning Tool - When Structured Correctly
“Life insurance is one of the more complex and opaque offerings among a sea of complicated financial products.”
When utilized in the context of a comprehensive financial or business plan, life insurance can play a very important role in protecting family wealth. It can improve financial outcomes by growing, protecting, and transferring assets with the least amount of expense, taxation, and risk. When employed correctly, it can cover a broad range of planning needs for both individuals and their families, large corporations as well as closely held businesses. What is rarely reviewed, discussed, and understood, however, is how a variety of design elements within a permanent life insurance policy directly affect its long-term viability. Integris Legacy Solutions’ singular focus is to ensure that our clients are well-informed and empowered to make the decision that best serves their individual situation.
The Sales Process Is An Issue
Years of analyzing policies for successful families and business owners has led to one overarching conclusion: Few clients truly understand the workings of their life insurance policies. Most are led to believe a simple, yet not always accurate assumption which is: “pay the premium and the policy will remain in effect.” A potential cause for this lack of understanding may be a result of the sales process itself, which, in many cases, neglects vital details, attributes, and risks of the recommended insurance product. Agents may believe that clients and their professional advisors do not want to delve into the internal mechanisms of the policy. We disagree and believe this is a disservice to clients since a lack of transparency in the sales process can lead to negative consequences years down the road. Unfortunately for policy owners, by the time potential problems are highlighted or become evident, it may be too late for solutions to be effective.
“A life insurance sale, void of the important details of policy design, can potentially disadvantage policy owners.”
It’s Not Magic…It’s Math
Those who purchase permanent life insurance view it as a solution to a variety of planning needs and they are correct. Life insurance can be a critical component of tax planning, whether that be for estate liquidity, equalization among heirs, asset protection, tax-free retirement income, or charitable aspirations. For business owners, its uses include buy/sell planning, key man benefits, income tax related strategies, and income replacement for their families. When being presented with options, however, many tend to rely strictly on the pricing of premiums over any other criteria. Though affordability is important, this approach can lead to serious policy deficiencies years down the road. A detailed review of the most affordable premium structure will often highlight a policy that will not perform when it is most needed. Integris Legacy Solutions believes in structuring policies that last and educating our clients about premium constructs suitable to their specific risk profile.
“Understanding the math behind policy illustrations is vital to making an informed decision regarding life insurance.”
If You Can’t Answer These Questions…You Need A Policy Review
What type of policy do I own? (Whole Life, Universal Life - Variable, Indexed, or Guaranteed)
How was the policy illustrated? (Rate of Return, Premium Structure, Maturity, Guarantees)
Is the policy performance tied to interest rates or equity market returns?
What are the tax implications of the policy’s ownership and premium funding?
Did the original illustration include performance enhancing bonuses or multipliers?
How is the policy’s performance to date?
“Helping clients understand policy terms and structure are requisite best practices that help ensure long-term success.”
Protecting Your Future, One Policy At A Time
Integris Legacy Solutions is focused on providing our clients with an unbiased understanding of their current insurance holdings as well as educating them on the risk/reward aspects of policy design. We review and design holistic, customized insurance programs to integrate the asset protection and near-term financial goals of our clients with their long-term legacy aspirations. This includes the analysis and implementation of business and estate planning strategies that could be used in conjunction with life insurance to improve overall tax efficiency and asset protection. We recognize the unique and interconnected risks faced by successful families with an approach that is both proactive and consultative, one that prioritizes transparency and client advocacy.
“We focus on protecting wealth for our clients today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.”
Let’s Talk
We believe our commitment to a transparent approach stands out in the life insurance marketplace. If our philosophy resonates with you, we look forward to a conversation to determine whether our services could benefit you and your family.