Beginning January 1, 2010, The Pension Protection Act will allow for specific Annuity contracts to pay qualifying long-term care expenses, INCOME TAX FREE!

Using cash value withdrawals from specific annuity contracts to pay for qualifying long-term care expenses or to pay qualified long-term care insurance premiums, will no longer be taxable income. Instead they will be considered a reduction of cost basis.  “A reduction of cost basis” means that distributions from the policy are non-taxable and reduce the owner’s cost basis in the contract (but not below zero).

Clients who have annuities as part of their investment portfolio today may also take advantage of this significant federal tax incentive that is just around the corner.

However, only certain annuities are ‘built’ to reap these benefits.  Annuity Care® from state Life is one of those annuities. As of Jan. 1, 2010, withdrawals from Annuity Care for qualifying long-term care expenses will be income tax-free! 

Now is a great time to discuss the importance of Annuity Care with your clients. With the advent of annuities with LTC benefits, your clients may start to look at preparing for retirement a little differently.

To learn more about Annuity Care’s other features, like optional lifetime coverage and protecting both spouses on one policy, contact Provada today at 415-369-9990.

How much more money will tax-deferral give me?

We all know that the longer you avoid paying taxes, the more money you will have. But have you ever calculated exactly how much more money tax-deferral provides?

Did you know that after postponing taxes for just six years, a tax-deferred annuity can produce 11% more income every year than a taxable account? After fifteen years, you will have 30% more income due to tax-deferral (refer to the table below).

The longer you defer taxes, the more money you will have—That’s the power of tax deferral!

Growth Comparison

Year                                       3                      6                     9                     12                     15              

Taxable                          $11,496          $12,756        $14,406         $16,271           $18,377

Tax-Deferred                 $11,910          $14,185        $16,895         $20,122           $23,966

Yearly Income Comparison

Year                                       3                      6                     9                     12                     15             

Taxable                             $678               $765              $864                $976              $1,103 

Tax-Deferred                    $715               $851           $1,014             $1,207             $1,438

Additional  Income            5%                 11%               17%                 24%                  30%

For more information, contact Provada at 415-369-9990.

Include SPIAs as part of your clients retirement portfolio and provide peace of mind with a guaranteed paycheck that will take care of their essential expenses at retirement. 

Click here, to read the CNN article "How to make your Money last"…
There are ways to guarantee you clients won’t run out of income, regardless of what the market does next.

Click here, for quick TIPs and RESOURCES on how to drive your annuity business today.

Once your client feels prepared for retirement, they will be much more receptive to optimizing the rest of their portfolio!!!

Contact Nickelle Leist, CAS, for a quote today Nickelle@provada.com.

CLICK HERE, to gain access to a recorded webinar.

Provada provides innovative sales ideas and case studies, on how to diversify your clients’ portfolios today, to provide dependable and guaranteed cash flow with flexibility in case things change tomorrow.

Take Advantage of These Four Sales Strategies: 

1. Cash Flow Diversification
2. Prospecting for 401K Roll-Overs
3. The Power of Tax Deferral
4. Fixed Annuities vs. Certificates of Deposit

Recognize the Need…. Provide a Solution

Need: Bridge the gap between now and retirement & guaranteed stream of income in the future.
Need: Stable growth rate and guaranteed retirement income.
Need: Looking for a "Safe Haven" for their savings

For more information, contact Provada at 415-369-9990

Well, if they qualify for the TOP 25 Program, they can!!

The Transamerica Opportunity Program (TOP 25) is an easy way for producers to expand their term inforce business.  It allows producers to offer clients a convenient way to top their existing term coverage by qualifying for up to $1 Million of additional term coverage without undergoing a medical exam.   

If you have a client or just know of someone between the ages of 18 - 55, that has purchased term insurance within the last 5 yrs, with a $100K face or larger, a Standard rating or better and underwritten with blood & urine analysis, from one of over 60 qualified carriers, then they are eligible for up to $1 million of additional term coverage (using the 25 yr term product) with no medical exam required. AND, the previously issued policy does not have to be inforce!! 

Check out this "TOP 25 Program" presentation. Just click on the link below:

Top 25 Program Presentation

For more information on this exciting program, contact Provada at 415-369-9990.

Provide your clients a value added service (at no hassle to you), that will open the door to a life insurance sale… and much more!

This program will help your clients and prospects understand what they have, how it works, and the strengths and weaknesses of their current portfolio… worst case scenario the clients policy is performing as expected, and you have built a bond of trust that will stick with that client forever.

Why do your clients need a Policy Review?

In Just 10 years, changes have been made in the way life insurance is designed, priced and medically underwritten.  Provada’s Personal Policy Review Program has been designed to evaluate your client’s current insurance policies in the face of: 

· Changing Interest Rates

· Longer Life Expectancies

· Improved Underwriting Classes

· The Ability to Exchange a Non-Guarantee

   policy for a Guaranteed Policy

What you need to do….

Fill out the Policy Review Fact Finder as complete as possible regarding the client current health and financial objectives. If you are not the writing agent for the client’s current policy, you will need the client to sign an Authorization form, allowing Provada or yourself to obtain the inforce illustrations from the carrier.

Provada does all the work so that you don’t have to…

Provada will take the information you provide, and do an objective review of the client’s current policy versus what is available in today’s market place. We will provide you with a complete turn-key marketing kit that will help you present the findings to your clients. What do you have to lose?

Our kit includes:

• Pre-approach letters for Individual and Business clients

• Simple One Page Fact finder / Authorization forms to obtain the inforce illustrations

• Customizable brochure with your agency information and logo

Ideal Policies for Review:

- Policies 5 + years (dated on or before 2002)                         - Non Guaranteed Products

- Existing UL, Whole Life, and Term Policies                           - Face amounts of $250,000 +

- Policy owners over the age of 50                                              - Existing premiums of $10,000 plus

- Policies with cash surrender values of $10,000 plus

For more information, contact Provada at 415-369-9990.

Problem:
CDs are subject to penalties if cash is withdrawn for unforeseen emergencies before the CD matures. 
Solution:
Many Immediate annuities now allow 100% return of principal on surrender, waiver of surrender charges for terminal illness, and 10% free withdrawals every year.  
Payouts can be tailored so that for certain medical conditions, payments increased up to 20%; or up to 50% for nursing home confinement. Options also include 3% inflation protection and survivor continuation. 

Annuity Bonus Round…
Immediate annuities avoid Probate upon an annuity owner’s death.  The cash value of the annuity will pass to the beneficiary outside of probate. Unless a CD owner has completed a “transfer upon death” form, the CD will pass through probate.

Higher Monthly Payouts, Immediate Annuities many times outperform CDs on payout rates because interest rates are only one component of annuity payouts. Distributions of principal contribute to the stream, as do mortality credits—the dividends that accrue to surviving contract owners. Mortality credits account for a growing share of the payment as you delay the start date

Also remember, insurers base their payout rates on corporate rates.  From 1919 to 2008, the average rate for long-term AAA corporate bonds was 6 percent.  Today, the rate is close to 6 percent and well above the lows of 2.5 percent in the late 1040’s.

Can your clients CD’s compete with this??

Click Here, to view a Case Study

For more information please contact Nickelle Leist at Nickelle@provada.com.

Save Time & Money!

TeleLife Program will Enhance Agent Productivity. 

WCL’s TeleLife program will streamline the way Term Life Insurance Applications are submitted and processed.

The Agents role…

1. You can make the sale in person or over the phone using a short one-page application.

2. Use the Pre-Qualification questionnaire to determine rate class

3. Writing agent signs the application (The client’s signature is not needed to submit the application; client signature will be obtained during the Medical exam.)

4. Submit the short application to Provada at applications@provada.com

or fax the application to: 415.369.9991

Remaining tasks are then handled by Provada and West Coast Life.

1. The phone interview is set-up and conducted with the client;

2. The client interview information is added to application;

3. The client records are ordered (APS’s, MVR’s, Inspection Reports, etc.);

4. Any outstanding requirements are followed up on;

5. The agent will be kept fully up-to-date on all activities.

Features and Benefits

• Application is completed during the 20-minute telephone interview
• Guaranteed completeness of pre-application and replacement forms
• 75% of the interviews are completed within 5 days
• Client signature is not required
• APS orders are reduced
• Expenses are reduced
• Placement ratios are improved
• There are no cost or fees to the Agent/Broker

The result is more sales… and more money!

WCL’s TeleLife Premium Min and Max:

Minimum face amount: $100,000; Maximum face amount: $10,000,000

For more information, please contact Provada at 415-369-9990.

It is not uncommon for clients to want their minor children (or grandchildren) to share in the death benefits under their life insurance policies or annuities, either as primary or contingent beneficiaries. Simply to name the minor children as direct beneficiaries, however, can cause nothing but problems … that is, if the insured or annuitant dies too soon, when the children are still under age. Why? Because minors are both legally and practically incapable of managing large sums of money, meaning that some responsible adult needs to be appointed to do that for them. This can be an expensive, cumbersome, restrictive, and time-consuming process.

There are right ways to accomplish a client’s objectives in this regard and there are wrong ways. Unfortunately, all too many policies are written with this accomplished the wrong way, with the minors simply named as direct beneficiaries. The best way to accomplish what the client wants here is for the client to have a living trust (or at least a will that creates a testamentary trust for minor children) that covers all of their estate assets, and to name the living trust (or testamentary trust) as the beneficiary of the death benefit proceeds for the children’s benefit.

I bet you’re saying to yourself, “He’s got to be kidding! Practically none of my clients have either a will or a living trust!” Well, you’re probably right, but there is another sound way to solve this problem, all the while encouraging your clients to do some real planning. I strongly urge you in these situations to name the minor children as beneficiaries (preferably as a group, not by individual names, in case another child comes along) and to use the following language:

“Children of the insured in equal shares per stirpes; provided, however, if any beneficiary is under age 25, that beneficiary’s share shall be paid to (name of desired responsible adult) as Custodian for that beneficiary until age 25 under the (name of state) Uniform Transfers to Minors Act; Successor Custodian: (name of alternate desired responsible adult).”

Comments: (1) “per stirpes” means that if a child has died leaving issue, those issue will take the deceased child’s share “by right of representation”. (2) For death-time transfers, most states’ laws permit the Custodianship to last until age 25, but your own state’s law should be checked in this regard; of course, an earlier age can always be specified if desired. (3) Most states have adopted the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, but some may still have a Uniform Gifts to Minors Act, which would have slightly different provisions; again, your own state’s law should be checked. (4) Consider how important this suggestion is when the insured is divorced and in no way wants the ex-spouse to have any control of the policy death benefit proceeds.

Please contact Provada with any questions regarding these matters.

A Guide to Special Needs Trusts by Nerre Shuriah

Special Needs planning is more critical now than ever before. Life expectancies of the disabled have increased, and the definition of "special needs" now includes individuals who lack functionality due to drug addiction and those with late- or adult-onset conditions, such as mental illness and trauma or injury from accidents.

Learn how life insurance may be the most critical component in funding third-party or pooled SNTs for disabled dependents. In an exclusive web article for National Underwriter, Nerre Shuriah explores the planning considerations and insurance needs of loved ones with special needs.

To read the full article, CLICK HERE

Provada will work with other planning professionals to bring about the best results for you. For more information, please contact us.