Mortality Credits and Period Certain

Mortality credits and period certain are two important concepts not to overlook when discussing the features of a life annuity product.  Many people aren’t familiar with these essential terms.   

Consider this: Doug and Helen walk into a bank. Doug is 20 years old and Helen is 70 years old. They both tell the bank officer that they have $100,000 to invest and want to take the most interest they can get for the rest of their lifetimes.

Because of her age, Helen has a distinct advantage in her number of choices.  Helen could simply put $100,000 in a bank CD and take the current interest rate of 2% on a five-year CD.

Social Security Benefits - When to Begin Collecting Them

As with most financial planning topics, this question, although seemingly straightforward, is actually rather complicated. As a result, when it comes to retirement planning, there are few issues that raise as much interest right now as Social Security.

Although it’s been around since 1935, most people today still admit knowing very little about Social Security and how it works. Yet, it is an important aspect of any retirement plan. Consider the following statistics:

• Nine out of ten individuals age 65 and older receive Social Security benefits.¹
• Social Security benefits represent about 39% of the income of the elderly. ¹
• Social Security provides more than half of the income for nearly two-thirds (65%) of elderly beneficiaries.²
• For almost four out of ten elderly recipients (36%), Social Security provides more than 90% of their income.

According to the Social Security Administration, the average monthly benefit being paid to current retirees is $1,234 per month. For a 66-year-old man with an average life expectancy of 82, this represents total payments of well over $200,000 in today’s dollars.

With so much at stake, the decision to begin Social Security benefits becomes a critical one. Let’s review the basics, setting aside for the moment the rules of eligibility.

Prisoner of Wealth

Very rarely would someone ask: are you or have you ever been a POW (“Prisoner of War”).  If you were asked that question, you might ask what in the world they are talking about or jokingly respond that you are indeed a prisoner – a prisoner of work.  But certainly, no one would admit to or even consider being a “Prisoner of Wealth."

The primary step to financial freedom is to free yourself from all the things that make you a Prisoner of Wealth. What do I mean by Prisoner of Wealth? The story of the Monkey Trap is a great way to illustrate this theory.

Budget Your Life - Build Your Lifestyle Ceiling

I want to take a brief moment to wish a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and yours from all of us at Kemp & Associates!

As we approach the holidays, it’s both a delightful time to spend with family and friends, and a time to step back, count our blessings and reflect on how fortunate we are. It is also a time when your budget may become slightly tighter. This leads into our next topic, which is the lifestyle ceiling¹. 

My family has been busy helping our oldest son get ready to attend college. It has been a great time to instruct and reflect with him, and it has also given me the opportunity to take a step back and remember what it was like for my wife, Shelley, and I when we attended college. If we go back 25 years when I graduated from high school in 1983, college wasn't a guarantee. If we go back 50 years², college was a luxury to some, maybe even akin to winning the lottery or striking it rich. 

Determining the “Right” Amount of Life Insurance

According to a recent study, Americans are more concerned with being able to pay their mortgage and other bills today than they were a year ago. Now, more than ever, it is crucial that consumers protect their financial security.¹ Life insurance is one tool that can provide this kind of protection. The fundamental question is: what is the “right” amount of life insurance?²