Life Insurance and Living Benefits

Summer is not officially over until September 21 st . However, “back to school” week is a sure sign of the fall! The fall is a busy time in our financial planning office, as people seem to use this time of year to tidy up many small items concerning everything financial. It might also be a good time of year for you to do the same, especially if you aren’t in this “fall time” habit. Many people have a list of items to refer to when it comes time for financial clean up. Here is a typical list:       Update beneficiaries on your insurance policies’ if required.       Increase your disability coverage if your income has increased.       Review your RRSP investments against your current Risk Tolerance questionnaire.       Top up your Tax Free Savings Account       Increase your RRSP deposits by 10%       Question your bank to see if you can save money by renewing your mortgage early.       Compare your bank mortgage insurance premium to a private policy.       Comp

Speaking to an audience can be a nerve-racking experience for anyone; especially if you are speaking in front of family, friends or people you may know.  However, speaking in front of strangers doesn’t subtract from all of the nervousness either.  You may notice that the anxious feeling of “life or death” does dissipate a bit when the audience is not related to you; but maybe this is just because you know that if you do a terrible job, you never have to see them again! I have spoken to thousands of people on spectacular stages in 10 different countries. I have spoken to English speaking audiences and I have spoken and been translated consecutively and simultaneously into Spanish, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Japanese and Portuguese, to name a few. Although I rarely get stage fright anymore, I still get butterfly’s in my stomach; albeit, they now fly in formation. While experience is helpful, there are a few tips one can use to calm their nerves, and sound a little more professional.  I st

I was building a deck a few years back and I didn’t know what type of wood to use.  When I asked my family and friends, everyone seemed to have their own answer.  One friend suggested spruce, another recommended pressure treated lumber, another proposed untreated lumber, and yet another believed cedar to be the best choice; if I could afford it. I wasn’t sure which wood to settle on until I asked a family member; who in turn asked me a question first. He asked: “how long do you want the deck to last?” I guess the answer really depended on what my own objective was. When buying life insurance, one must ask themselves similar questions; such as: Why do I want the coverage? How long will I need the insurance? Is my need short term or permanent? Will my need diminish with time? And the most important question: How much coverage do I need to accomplish my objective? By asking these questions, the answers will come to the surface; and speaking with an advisor will

In our last blog (Term Insurance Defined) we talked about the basics of 10 and 20 year term insurance. This blog will cover the basics of Whole Life Insurance . Sometimes the need for insurance reaches far beyond the need for insurance which arises when you want to cover the payment of a bank loan, or a mortgage. In some cases the need for insurance is permanent. In other words, your need for coverage will last your entire life.   As such, an insurance solution would involve a “permanent” insurance product where the premium is affordable over a long period of time. Permanent needs are often considered to be things like: Funds to pay income tax, which are triggered at death. To pay the capital gain on a family cottage at death. Sometimes cash is needed at death to even the distribution of asset payments to the family where otherwise selling property or a business might decrease its value A permanent policy may help fund a charitable gift which would in turn decrease