Single Premium Whole Life Pros and Cons

Would you like to be able to take a lump sum of money, and then turn it into a larger sum of money so you could pass it on to the next generation? If you have spoken to a financial advisor or insurance agent, they may have mentioned SPLI (Single Premium Life). This product can work well for some people.

Single premium whole life insurance is not much different than the regular policies you are used to. But instead of making multiple payments every month, quarterly, or annually, you simply fund it with one large upfront payment.

That money, paid at the start, will guarantee coverage for your whole life. What you have done, really, is to turn a sum of cash into a much larger amount of coverage on you. This is how you can take one amount of money, and turn it into a larger estate to pass on to your beneficiaries.

Let us say that a retired school teacher is comfortable with her pension and savings. In this example, she just inherited $22,000 from an uncle, and is certain that she will not need to use this money to enjoy her life. She may be able to take this amount of money and buy a $100,000 SPLI policy so she can have a very nice estate to pass on to her son.

The paragraph above is only meant to illustrate how this works. The amount of cash you would have, and the death benefit you could buy, depend upon different things. As with any other life insurance, your premium and coverage amount will depend upon age, health, etc.

Would SPLI be something for you to think abuot? If you have some money, and would like to be sure you can leave more money to survivors, it may be something to think about. It works best if you are sure that you do not need that money to live on, especially in the next few years.

Be sure you will not have to use the money for a few years. In the first few years, policies can impose fees and surrender charges. So it is probably not the right life insurance if you are not sure if you will need the money to live on.

Another advantage to the owner is a SPL policy’s ability to grow a cash value quickly. If you can leave the money alone for the few years you will need to get past surrender charges, you can have a nice place to borrow money from. You can also cash the policy in. The cash value should grow quickly since the insurance is already funded by the initial payment!

Another feature is the fact that many policies allow you to accelerate the death benefit in case of a terminal illness. This way, a person could use the money if they need it. Some also have provisions for withdrawing part of the cash value in case of nursing home confinement.

But SPLI is not good for everybody. There are some disadvantages to consider. You do need the money to fmake that first, and only, payment. If you do have to surrender early, you risk losing money for fees. The IRS treats these a little differently than regular life policies too. You may not enjoy all of the tax benefits.

Get more information on questions like Why Retired People Purchase Life .

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