{"id":274,"date":"2013-03-22T15:53:28","date_gmt":"2013-03-22T15:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/andrewwbradley.ca\/Retirement-Made-Easy\/?p=274"},"modified":"2013-03-22T15:53:28","modified_gmt":"2013-03-22T15:53:28","slug":"life-insurance-where-do-i-start","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/2013\/03\/22\/life-insurance-where-do-i-start\/","title":{"rendered":"Life Insurance? Where do I start?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Life<\/a>Life insurance is an important part of financial planning, but understanding\u00a0 insurance and purchasing the right product can be confusing. While you should\u00a0 rely on the expertise and recommendations of your insurance agent, it’s always a\u00a0 good idea to do your own research. Here are five factors to consider before you\u00a0 buy insurance:
\n1. Why you need life insurance. We all want to plan for our family’s future\u00a0 and financial security. Part of this process includes ensuring that our loved\u00a0 ones are supported in the event of our death, a spouse’s death, or the death of\u00a0 a parent. Insurance can provide protection in many different ways, such as\u00a0 helping to fund your retirement or paying for mortgages and college educations.\u00a0 It is also a key component of estate planning.
\n2. The amount of life insurance you need. There are many factors to consider\u00a0 when deciding how much insurance is right for you and your family, and they may\u00a0 change as you age. It’s important to understand the purpose, policies, premiums,\u00a0 benefits and, ultimately, the best insurance for your specific situation. Here\u00a0 are a few considerations when determining how much insurance is enough:
\n*How much money your family will need to live comfortably if you pass away\u00a0 *Whether your home is paid for or if you still have a mortgage *If you\u00a0 have a business, how your passing will financially impact the company\u00a0 *Whether your family has access to money to pay for your burial expenses\u00a0 *The cost of financial and legal assistance to manage your estate\u00a0 *Whether your passing will create an estate tax burden for your heirs
\n3. The different types of insurance available. Once you decide how much\u00a0 insurance you need, the next step is deciding whether term insurance or whole\u00a0 life insurance is right for you. Here are the basics:
\n*Term life insurance: As its name implies, term life provides protection for\u00a0 a specific period of years. If you pass away during this period, your\u00a0 beneficiaries are paid the value of your policy. Term life insurance is the most\u00a0 popular for a variety of reasons, including the fact that benefits can be used\u00a0 to pay off outstanding debts such as mortgages in the event of a premature death, and that premiums are\u00a0 generally inexpensive when you purchase it at an earlier age. Someone in their\u00a0 20s, for instance, will pay far less than someone in their 80s for the same\u00a0 amount of insurance.
\n*Whole life insurance: A whole life insurance policy remains in effect\u00a0 throughout your lifetime as long as you continue to pay the premiums. You can\u00a0 typically use whole life insurance policies as collateral for loans or even\u00a0 receive cash payments while you are still living. However, premiums for whole\u00a0 insurance are more costly than term insurance, so younger families are generally\u00a0 encouraged to buy term life, with the option of converting the term\u00a0 life policy to a whole life policy at a later date.
\n*Universal Life: A universal life insurance policy also provides permanent life insurance protection, but differs from whole life in its flexibility that\u00a0 allows you to select the amount of protection that best fits you, your family,\u00a0 and\/or your business. You can increase or decrease coverage as your insurance\u00a0 needs change, as well as control the frequency and amount of premium\u00a0 payments.
\n4. Risks that impact insurance costs. Insurance premiums are based on many\u00a0 different risk factors, including age, overall health, and the use of tobacco.\u00a0 If you are still relatively young, are in good health, and don’t smoke, now’s\u00a0 the time to buy insurance!
\n5. How to choose the right insurance agent. With so many variables, choosing\u00a0 the right amount and type of insurance should be discussed with a trusted\u00a0 independent insurance agent. Independent brokers have access to many more\u00a0 insurance products and are typically more invested in your financial future. Be\u00a0 sure to do your homework, don’t be afraid to ask questions, and know your policy\u00a0 inside and out before you sign on the dotted line.
\nIf you’re shopping for life insurance and want to learn more about the right\u00a0 type of policy for you and your family, visit\u00a0AndrewWBradley.ca <\/a>or call\u00a0 613.286.6841.<\/p>\n

\nAndrew W Bradley<\/strong> is a licensed Insurance Broker and Financial Services Advisor helping Orleans families since 2011. Combining this with his previous working experience with the Canada Revenue Agency enables him to help a wide range of individuals, families and businesses. As an Independent Broker he devotes time to educating the consumer and implementing comprehensive financial plans for both individuals and businesses in areas including insurance and investments.\n<\/div>\n

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Life insurance is an important part of financial planning, but understanding\u00a0 insurance and purchasing the right product can be confusing. While you should\u00a0 rely on the expertise and recommendations of your insurance agent, it’s...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24168,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[280,361,366,376,535],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/274"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/274\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.andrewwbradley.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}