The majority of us are not rich. Many people, nowadays, live paycheck to paycheck. Last thing we need is to get taken for an expensive ride by a life insurance salesperson whom is nowadays cleverly hidden behind the title financial advisor. There are laws to protect from the worst of cases, but you can save thousands and more by following these tips:

1. Find out what your current limits are if you have insurance through your employer. On average employers only provide $50,000 coverage if they do at all. This is not enough coverage. As a general rule you should have $250,000 - $500,000.

2. Educate yourself. Just like buying a car, you don’t want to pay full retail price. Everything is negotiable. Look up and compare whole and term life. Do your self a favor and look it up on the internet. You will see a wide range in prices for the same coverages. For instance Ameritas was less than 1/2 the yearly premium of Allstate and Met Life for the same coverages - that means a 50%+ savings every year for the same coverage! That amounts to thousands upon thousands of dollars saved in just a few years. Make sure you pick an A rated carrier that has been around a long time.

3. Do not buy whole life! Know that term is cheaper and a better deal. Whole life is insurance with a slight savings/investing mix. These slick salespeople get their big paydays when you sign up for whole life. Your first years premium and 3-4% thereafter goes to commissions. Therefore, you won’t see much in growth for 15 - 20 years. You would do 10X better with any good mutual fund. Don’t let them fool you with claims that your investments are tax free. Its not - per the IRS its tax deferred, not tax free. And due to the extremely high commissions you won’t ever see much growth. Just look up on the internet and see how many people amassed great wealth with whole life - you will find the answer is zero! What a rip off! Upon calling numerous experts, the only reason to have whole life is if you are 60-65 or above, or if you are extremely wealthy and want to use it to pay your estate taxes when you die. That is it from the worlds leading experts! Suzie Orman will tell you the same - stay away from whole life!

4. If you are going to hire a financial advisor, hire a fee-based financial advisor. They will not push loaded funds and are truly interested in your benefit. They want you to succeed and give them referrals. This is how business should be done! There is only 1 place to go to find the best fee-based financial advisors in the country - The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) www.napfa.org. You can find a financial advisor near you and they have to have top-notch qualifications. Something you won’t find with flighty, commisioned based advisors.
So there you have it. Find out what your coverage is. Get educated - you can never have too much education (whether it be formal or informal). Do not buy whole life! And get a fee-based financial advisor. You will be glad you did!

David Maillie is an alumni of Cornell University and specializes in biochemical synthesis for public, private, and governmental interests. He holds numerous patents including his recently awarded patent for headlight cleaner and restorer. He can be reached at M.D. Wholesale: http://www.mdwholesale.com and at http://www.bestskinpeel.com

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Life insurance, whether you are talking about whole life, term life, or one of the many policy variations available, can be a complicated and misunderstood subject. Perhaps for this reason it is not unusual that we make wrong decisions when purchasing a life insurance policy. With that in mind, we would like to bring up what some experts consider to be the four most common mistakes made when purchasing life insurance.

First, treating your life insurance policy as a savings account. Insurance is often purchased for two reasons, tax savings and as an investment instrument. Many experts believe that life insurance is best purchased to do what it is intended to do, which is provide protection in the event of loss of life. For this reason we suggest, as do many insurance experts, purchasing a term policy for life insuance, and for savings purchasing a separate mutual fund account. Granted, this view is somewhat of a purist viewpoint and will not be for everybody. Still, term policies are relatively inexpensive, free of complexities, and payout quickly.

Second, allowing your agent to make all of the decisions. Do your homework and understand what you are buying. We urge you not to trust your agent too completely-regardless of how honest or well intentioned you believe him or her to be. Your agent may be a model of intelligence and integrity, but the ultimate responsibility for any decision made rests with you; don’t give someone else all the power.

Third, treating the purchase of life insurance as a one-time-purchase-and-forget-about-it-activity. Your needs will change over time. As your life circumstances change, so will your insurance needs. For example, the sort of policy you buy as a single individual will not provide adequate coverage should you decide to marry and start a family.

Fourth, buying the wrong kind of insurance. Yes, this is an all too common mistake. For example, many people buy universal or variable life insurance policies without properly understanding the kind of insurance they’ve bought and that these are complicated investment instruments. This sort of purchase might be completely wrong for a single person whose income would not allow premium payment in the event of unfavorable market fluctuations.

When buying life insurance, be sure to take the time to do your research. It isn’t necessary to spend sleepless nights in the library. However, it is important that you thoroughly understand your needs and which sort of life insurance will offer the best protection with respect to the demands of your life. There is a great deal of concern about finding the cheapest, or lowest cost life insurance. But one action you can take to insure you get the lowest premium price for your “life” is to put in the time to learn how to make an informed decision about the life insurance that will serve you best.

Evan C. Davis works in Medicare customer service and is the webmaster and owner of Value Life Insurance. Find out about cheap term life quotes online and low cost term life premiums at http://www.a2b-life-insurance.info

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