Protect Your Future with the Proper Life Insurance

Life insurance is the foundation of a good financial plan.

When you buy life insurance, you're helping protect your family's future financial security. The main purpose of life insurance is to provide cash to your family after you die. The money your beneficiaries receive, the "death benefit", is an important resource. It can help pay the mortgage, run the household, ensure your dependents aren't burdened with debts, and provide a sense of security while they readjust. Life insurance also can be used to help with other financial goals, such as funding retirement or educational expenses.

Buying life insurance is not like any other purchase you will make. Choosing a life insurance product is an important decision, but it can be complicated. As with any major purchase, it's important that you understand your needs and the options available to you.

Permanent Life Insurance

Permanent insurance - including whole, universal and variable life - provides lifelong protection. As long as you pay the necessary premiums, the death benefit will be paid. These policies are designed and priced for you to keep over a long period of time.

A unique feature of permanent life insurance known as "cash value," "cash surrender value," or "net surrender value" is the amount available when you surrender a policy before its maturity. This value is different from the policy face amount, which is money that is paid at death, or at policy maturity.

• You can cancel (1) or "surrender" the policy, in part or in total, and receive the cash value as a lump sum.
• Provided sufficient value has accumulated, your cash value can be used to pay the premium for your current insurance protection, or for a lesser amount of protection.
• You can borrow (2) from the insurance company, using the cash value as collateral.

1 - If you surrender your policy in the early years, there may be little or no cash value and there may be surrender charges assessed. In addition, tax consequences may occur if you cancel or surrender a policy.

2 - You ultimately must repay any loan with interest or your beneficiaries will receive a reduced death benefit.

Whole Life

Whole Life Insurance is one of the most common types of permanent insurance. It is designed to stay "in force" throughout one's lifetime.

The premiums generally remain level over the life of the policy and must be paid regularly in the amount indicated in the policy. Generally, a whole life policy is a "participating" policy, meaning you are entitled to a share of any annual distribution of the Company's surplus. Your share is known as your "dividend." Dividends are not guaranteed, however, MassMutual offers a variety of whole life insurance policies with varying premiums, cash values, and death benefit amounts.

Historically, whole life insurance has provided several remarkable tax benefits:

• There is a tax-free build up of the cash values attributable to favorable investment experience of the insurance company.
• The owner could borrow against the cash values at relatively low interest rates and without a tax.
• At time of death, the beneficiary collected the proceeds free of income tax.
• By transferring ownership of the policy to another, the proceeds could also escape Federal Estate Taxes.

Universal Life

Universal Life allows you, after your initial payment, to pay premiums at any time, in any amount, subject to certain minimums and maximums. Premiums can fluctuate or be as regular as you need. New premiums earn interest at current rates. Unlike whole life, it does not earn dividends. At the same time each month, deductions are made from the fund value to pay for insurance protection and policy expenses. As long as the fund value is sufficient to meet each deduction as it comes due, the policy remains in force. You also can reduce or increase the amount of death benefit more easily than under a traditional whole life policy. By raising or lowering the amount of coverage, a single policy can be adjusted to meet protection needs that change over your lifetime.

No increase in premiums is necessary to raise coverage, although the cost of insurance will increase to reflect the new amount. (Increases may require evidence of insurability, while decreases are subject to policy minimums.) You can choose a level or an increasing death benefit option. The total death benefit under either option is either the face amount in the policy or the face amount plus the fund value. Fund value accumulations are tax-deferred, as with any permanent life insurance product.

Variable Life

Variable Life provides death benefits and account values that vary with the performance of the policy's separate account funds. You can allocate your premiums among a variety of investments offering different degrees of risk and reward - stocks, bonds, combinations of both, or accounts that guarantee interest and principal. If you are interested in a variable life contract, contact Miller and Wade Group to give you a prospectus. The prospectus details policy expenses, contract provisions and historical performance information for the investment funds. The account value of a variable life policy is not guaranteed and you bear the investment risk. However, by choosing among the available fund options, you can diversify your assets to help meet your objectives and risk tolerance. Good sub-account performance can lead to higher account values and death benefits. Conversely, if the sub-accounts perform poorly, account values and death benefits will drop. Some policies guarantee death benefits cannot drop below a minimum level.

Advantages of Permanent Life Insurance

• As long as sufficient premiums are paid, protection is guaranteed for life
• Your first premium payment creates an immediate estate, payable in full at death - regardless of how soon death occurs.
• There are generally no probate or administration costs or delays in settling an insurance claim if the proceeds are payable to a named beneficiary.
• Generally, life insurance proceeds are income tax free.
• Premium costs can be fixed or flexible to meet personal financial needs.
• The policy accumulates a cash value against which you can borrow, although the loan will reduce policy values.
• The policy's cash value can be surrendered, in part or in total, for cash.
• The cash can then be used to purchase an annuity (to provide an income over a person's lifetime or over a specified period).
• A "rider can be added to a policy to provide the option to purchase additional insurance without taking a medical exam or having to furnish evidence of insurability.

Additional Features

"Riders" that provide additional benefits can be added to a policy. With a "waiver of premium for disability" rider, if you become totally disabled for a specified period, you may not have to pay premiums for the duration of the disability. An "accidental death benefit" pays an additional benefit in case of death resulting from an accident.

For more information on Life Insurance, fill out the form on this page and we will personally contact you within one business day.