Life Insurance

Why Life Insurance

You work hard to provide for your family. But if you were suddenly gone, what would happen to your family’s way of life? Where would the money come from to pay the everyday bills? And how about all of the other things that you do for your family like cooking, cleaning, home maintenance, caregiving, driving the kids to their activities, etc? If you’re not around, someone will need to handle those functions and that costs money. That’s where life insurance comes in. It provides your family members with financial support until they’re able to manage on their own.

Seems pretty sensible, right? Why then do so many Americans either have little or no life insurance? Is it because they don’t care about what would happen to their loved ones after they die? Hardly. It’s human nature to protect the ones we love. It’s mostly because of misconceptions regarding cost. The #1 reason that people give for not buying life insurance is because they think it’s too expensive. If you’re one of those people, we’ve got good news for you. Life insurance rates remain near historic lows, and we specialize in helping our customers find the best insurance solutions for their needs and budget.

We Make it Easy for You to Shop

Our goal is to make the buying process as easy as possible for you. If you feel like you’re ready to proceed with a purchase right away, go directly to our Quote Form to begin the process. It only takes a minute to complete the form. Using the information you provide, we’ll instantly compare rates from the highly rated companies we represent and provide you with our recommendations. After you select the policy you’d like to purchase, one of our licensed insurance professionals will contact you to answer any questions and help you continue the application process.

If you know you need life insurance but you’re not sure how much or what kind to buy, please spend a few minutes on our website. We explain all of the basics in easy-to-understand language. Buying life insurance is one of the most important financial decisions you’ll ever make, and we want you to feel confident in your knowledge before moving ahead with a purchase.

A final word

When it comes to buying life insurance, people have a tendency to procrastinate. Many of us think to ourselves: “I know I need life insurance, but I feel fine at the moment and now is not a good time. I’ll get around to it one of these days.” Don’t give into this kind of thinking. We all hope to live long, happy lives. But what if that’s not what happens in your case? You don’t want to take any chances when it comes to your family’s financial security. Take action today by emailing Ana Estrada,  

Our Products

Beach Financial Group offers you a suite of life insurance options. Below you’ll find information about our four main product offerings.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance is generally the most affordable type of life insurance. It provides your loved ones with financial protection for a specific period of time such as 10, 20 or 30 years. We specialize in level-term policies, which means that your premiums will remain the same for the “term” of your policy (i.e., 10 or 20 years).

If you die during the term, a death benefit will be paid to your beneficiaries in the amount of the policy you purchased. Now is a particularly good time to buy life insurance because rates are near historic lows. To give you an example, a healthy non-smoking 40-year-old can buy a 10-year, $250,000 level-term policy for a monthly premium of just $12. For women, the cost is even lower. Click here for your personalized, no-obligation quote.

When considering a term insurance purchase, it’s important to keep in mind that your coverage will generally end when the level-period expires. So let’s say that you bought a 10-year policy. If you decide after 10 years that you still have a need for coverage, you may be able to renew your policy for several more years but your premiums are likely to increase substantially. For that reason, most people will let their policies expire when their term ends. That’s why it’s very important to select the proper length of coverage when buying a term policy.

Return-of-Premium (ROP) Term Life Insurance

With a traditional term policy, if you don’t die during the term, you’re left with nothing when the policy expires. You coverage simply ends. For people who wish they could receive some sort of benefit if they outlive their term coverage, return-of-premium (ROP) term life insurance may be a good solution. ROP policies are similar to traditional term policies in that you purchase them for terms of say 20 or 30 years and the premiums remain level throughout the term. But here’s how they differ. If you’re lucky enough to outlive your policy and you keep it in force for the entire term (e.g., 20 years), your insurance company will refund all of the premiums you paid over the 20-year period. If you decide to cancel your policy after say, 10 years, you’ll get a partial refund of your premiums. Of course, there’s a price to be paid for getting some or all of your premium money back. Premiums for ROP policies are considerably higher than premiums for traditional term policies, sometimes as much as 100% or more.

No-Lapse Universal Life Insurance

Universal life insurance is a form of permanent life insurance. Unlike term policies that expire at the end of the “term,” permanent life insurance policies provide lifelong protection. Permanent policies also give you the ability to accumulate cash values on a tax-deferred basis, just like assets in most retirement and tuition savings accounts.

Universal life policies are generally the most affordable and flexible types of permanent life insurance. These policies allow you to vary your premium payments, subject to certain minimums and maximums. If your budget is tight for a period of time, you can reduce the amount you pay. If you find yourself with extra cash on hand, you can make higher payments and your cash-value account can grow faster.

The type of universal life insurance that we offer is called No-Lapse Universal Life Insurance. Some people also refer to it as Universal Life Insurance with Secondary Guarantees. With an ordinary universal life policy, the policy could lapse under certain circumstances (e.g., interest rates fall below projections, insurance costs increase, etc). With a No-Lapse policy, you’re guaranteed that the policy won’t lapse, even if these circumstances occur.

So why would a person chose to buy a universal life policy instead of a cheaper term life policy? It’s usually for one of two reasons. Many people like the idea of lifelong coverage. They want to know that their coverage will be in force whenever they die, even if it’s 50 or 60 years from now. Also, some affluent Americans have estate tax liabilities and life insurance proceeds are often used to pay estate taxes. With a term policy, there’s no guarantee that your policy will be in force when you die.  The second reason is the cash value, which you only get with a permanent life insurance policy.  You can use your cash values for any purpose you wish, such as a down payment on a home, college tuition payments or maybe to invest in a business opportunity. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that withdrawing or borrowing funds from your policy will reduce its cash value and death benefit if not repaid.

Final Expense Insurance

Final Expense Insurance is a type of permanent life insurance designed to satisfy a very specific purpose: To pay for your funeral costs and other final expenses such as estate settlement costs, credit card debt and medical bills that weren’t covered by your health insurance. These policies are often a good solution for people who didn’t buy life insurance earlier in life and now realize that they don’t want their loved ones to be burdened with final expenses when they die. It’s difficult enough to lose someone you love. You don’t want your family’s grief to be compounded by concerns about how they’re going to pay your funeral costs and other debts you may have left behind. Final Expense Insurance can help you avoid this scenario.

Typically, a Final Expense policy is a Whole Life policy. With this type of insurance, the premiums and the death benefit are guaranteed to remain the same for as long as you keep the policy in force. Like other forms of permanent life insurance, a Final Expense policy will allow you to accumulate cash values on a tax-deferred basis. You can withdraw or borrow money from you policy for any purpose. If you do so, your beneficiaries will receive a reduced death benefit when you die if you didn’t repay the funds you borrowed or withdrew. 

One of the best things about Final Expense Insurance is that it’s very simple to apply for. Typically, you don’t have to get a medical exam or answer a long questionnaire. You just need to answer some basic questions about yourself. This is called Simplified Underwriting, and it’s a good option for people who buy life insurance when they’re a bit older or maybe not in the best of health. You’ll generally pay more for a policy that doesn’t require Full Underwriting. But if your goal is to make sure that your loved ones aren’t burdened with your final expenses when you die, it’s a price worth paying, as long as you can fit it within your budget.

Our Companies

Beach Financial Group partners with the nation’s leading life insurance companies.  All of the companies we do business with have an A- rating or better from A.M. Best, one of the nation’s top ratings agencies.  Our companies are easy to work with during the buying process and dependable when it comes to paying claims. The highly rated companies we represent include, but are not limited to:

• American General
• American National
• AXA Equitable
• Aviva
• Banner Life
• Genworth Financial
• ING
• John Hancock
• Legal & General
• Liberty Mutual
• Lincoln Financial Group
• MetLife
• Minnesota Life
• Mutual of Omaha
• Nationwide
• Principal Financial Group
• Protective
• Prudential
• SBLI
• The Standard                           
• Transamerica

Life Insurance FAQs

Here are 10 of the most frequently asked questions when considering a life insurance purchase.

1. How much life insurance do I need? How do you know if you need $250,000, $500,000 or more in coverage? A life insurance needs analysis will help you figure it out. It’s actually a pretty simple calculation. You begin by estimating your family’s immediate and future financial needs. Then, you add up all of the resources that are in place to meet those needs. The difference between the two is your need for life insurance. Using our Life Insurance Needs Calculator, it only takes about 2 minutes to get an estimate of your needs.
2. If your employer provides you with a life insurance benefit, do you really need more? Life insurance through your job is a great perk to receive, but you should view it as just that…a perk or an added bonus. For one thing, most employers tend to provide very limited amounts of coverage at their own expense, typically a lump sum such as $10,000 or coverage equal to one times your annual salary.  Another limitation is that it’s not always possible or practical to take your coverage with you if you change jobs. An individually owned policy follows you around wherever you go. If you change jobs, you won’t have to worry about the possibility of your family being left unprotected.
3. Should I get a policy for 10 years, 20 years or even longer? It’s impossible to provide a generic answer to this question since everyone’s situation is different. Many people will buy a policy that provides coverage until their kids reach college-graduation age. Others will want to have coverage until their mortgage is paid off. A business owner might want lifelong coverage for business succession planning purposes. Our best advice is to speak with one of our life insurance professionals, who can conduct a quick needs analysis over the phone and help you determine the amount and duration of coverage that’s right for you.
4. What type of life insurance should I buy, term or permanent? This is another question for which there’s no blanket answer. Both types of insurance have their merits. Our view is that for many people term is often the best solution because it allows you to get the most coverage for your money. When buying life insurance, the most important thing you want to do is buy enough coverage. When you die, your family won’t care if you had term or permanent insurance. They’ll only want to know…is there enough. 
5. Why do I need a medical exam when applying for coverage? With most life insurance purchases, you’re required to have a medical exam as part of the application process. That’s because your personal health status is one of the key factors used to determine how much you’ll pay for your policy. If you think about it, that makes sense. If you’re in perfect health, your odds of living a long life are much greater than someone your age who is in poor health, and you should be rewarded in the form of lower premiums. Conversely, someone in poor health should be required to pay more than you because there’s a greater chance, statistically, that the insurance company will have to pay a claim for that person. The exams usually take no longer than 20 minutes and are conducted by paramedical companies that come either to your home or office, at a time that’s convenient for you.  
6. If I’ve had serious health issues, will I be able to qualify for coverage? A lot of people don’t apply for life insurance coverage because they think they won’t qualify. But the truth is, they’re making a mistake. If you need life insurance, you should apply. It’s true that people in poor health will pay more for coverage, but that’s a better plan than leaving your family’s financial future to chance. Even if you’ve had a very serious condition such as cancer, many companies will provide you with coverage as long as you can show that you’ve been cancer-free for a certain period of time (e.g., 2 years) and that the cancer isn’t likely to recur in the near future.
7. How long does the application process take? Because most life insurance applications require underwriting (i.e., a medical exam, an evaluation of your family’s health history, etc.), the process typically takes from 1 to 2 months. The good news is that we get cases processed faster than almost anyone else in the business thanks to our streamlined underwriting procedures and the excellent working relationships we have with the highly rated companies that we represent.
8. What is an accelerated death benefit? Most policies contain a provision that allows a terminally ill person to “accelerate” part of his or her death benefit while that person is still alive. Some people will use the money to take care of financial affairs and other final arrangements. Others will use the money to help pay for medical bills. The money can even be used to do nice things for your family like take them on vacation while you’re still able to. 
9. Who should I name as the beneficiary of my policy? There are various options, and each has its merits depending on your particular situation. You can name specific individuals such as a spouse, a partner or your children. When naming individuals, it’s important to name contingent (or secondary) beneficiaries in the event that you outlive your primary beneficiary. Another option is to assign the proceeds of your policy to your estate. If you do so, make sure that your will clearly states how and to whom your assets are to be distributed. You can also set up a life insurance trust and assign the benefits of your policy to the trust. If you are a high net worth individual, this can be beneficial for estate planning purposes. In making decisions about beneficiaries, it’s advisable to consult your attorney and/or tax advisor. 
10. How often should I review my life insurance needs? Life insurance needs change as circumstances in your life change such as the birth of a child, buying a new home, getting a job or promotion, getting married or divorced, starting a business, etc. So it’s wise to have your life insurance needs assessed at least every few years to make sure that your insurance needs are keeping up with all of the other changes in your life.

We have a special working relationship with all these companies, which allows us to get you the best rates possible. When you request a quote, we search all these top-rated companies to find the one that is best for your specific needs and budget. We make it as easy as possible so you don’t have to search around to find the best rate. So save both time and money by letting us do the searching for you. Start the process now by emailing .