Life Insurance. Doesn’t it just conjure up some insurance salesman knocking on your door trying to sell you a policy that covers you for accidents only, for a small amount and costs you the earth? No? It doesn’t too me either because those days are long gone!

I prefer to call it “Life Assurance” anyway, because it is assuring you that your life is convered in the event of death and that what your life is insured for, will be paid out to your estate or policy owner.

But how many of you actually have this cover in place? I know of lots of my friends, who are in their 20′s who don’t have the cover because 1) they don’t know anything about (lack of education) and 2) they don’t think they need it and see it as an extra cost. How little they know… like anything, the earlier you start, the cheaper it is…

Following are 10 important reasons why YOU should have life assurance and why those around you too should invest in this:

Reason 1

Hello? Do you have any bills, like maybe a mortgage?? This alone is a pertinent reason to have life assurance… it means that should you die, this major bill will be paid off and not left to your survivors to deal with!

Reason 2

Young, fit and healthy? No ailments? Then this is the best time to get life assurance! Your premium will be small and if you take out a policy that allows you to keep the same premium until the age of 65, you will have considerable savings… the earlier you start, the better. And then if you develop any health issues throughout your life, it doesn’t matter, because you already have the cover in place!

Reason 3

Are you married? Do you care about your spouse? Then is it not thoughtful to make sure that your spouse does not have to worry about money should you pass before they do and vice versa? I know a couple who cancelled their life insurance and then 6 months later he was diagnosed as having stomach cancer, and died 18 months later… leaving behind a wife and two children still at home and a mortgage… and no monetry relief for his family. Is this what you want to put your partner through?

Reason 4

Want to leave a legacy for your future grand children? What better way then ensuring your estate will actually have some legacy to pass on! You can elect in your will to have the proceeds of your life assurance paid directly to your estate and then as per your will, divy up the proceeds.

Reason 5

Peace of mind… yours that is. If you can’t afford health insurance or any other insurance, you can afford life insurance… and should you develop a terminal disease… your life insurance will pay out a lump sum upon confirmation of this, allowing you to fulfil any dreams you have not achieved or to get your affairs in order.

There are many more reasons I could go into here, but you get the gist… just like you wouldn’t risk not having your car insured or your house or contents… how can you not insure your number one asset… yourself?

There are plenty of fantastic financial advisers out there. If you don’t have one, a great place to start is your bank, they have trained staff that can guide you… just make sure you read through any quotes you receive etc and make sure you understand just what you are being covered for.

My 2 cents worth

You have certainly heard people talking about life insurance, its benefits and how you need to get it, but they have probably not told you why you should have one. You may have even asked them, “why buy life insurance?” You are probably wondering why life insurance is really important. The answer for this is not complicated, fortunately, and it extends past the money alone. It takes in all aspects of your life and encompasses many things that you may not have considered before. A few of the reasons are listed below so that you can have a better grasp on it if you have ever asked yourself: “Why buy life insurance?”

First off, you may be asking yourself: “Why buy life insurance before I am old? Why buy life insurance when death is so far away?” You may have the idea that this is something that young people do not need to concern themselves with. Many times, however, the exact opposite is true. You have to think about the logistics of the world after you are gone. If you are ninety years old when you die, do you have children living with you who need to go to college? Do you have a whole family who counts on you for support?

The answer is probably no. When you are younger, however, these things are very real. You need to think about what will happen to your loved ones without you. What do you think your worth is to your loved ones? Even if don’t know it, though young, your family is investing in you with expectations that YOU will make significant contributions to yourself, your family and society. Do you want to let them down if the unexpected happens?

Now, perhaps you live alone. Perhaps you do not have a family and you think you still are too young to need a policy. However, do not forget that someone will have to pay for your funeral and all of these expenses. Most likely, this will be your nearest of kin. You may ask yourself: “Why buy life insurance? Why buy life insurance if I’m not sure that they will need it?” In a very real sense, they might. They might be having their own financial challenges, don’t be selfish, and think of them.

From a monetary point of view, you could ask yourself: “Why buy life insurance when I cannot afford it? Why buy life insurance to create extra bills?” What you need to consider is that it only gets more expensive as you grow older. The companies will evaluate you based on the risk you pose to them. An older person, then, will have to pay more since they will naturally die sooner. Getting a plan sooner in life is a good way to get it for less.

Finally, you may think: “Why buy life insurance when I do not have any sickness? Why buy life insurance before I have a disease?” The problem with waiting is that some diseases and medical conditions will make it impossible for you to get a policy. The truth is that in most cases you can only get one before you are sick. Once you are sick and diagnosed it goes in to database called MIB-Medical Information Bureau. This is what the entire industry uses before approving life insurance.

Unfortunately, nobody’s health is guaranteed. One day you wake up fit as a fiddle and the next moment; bang! something comes up. Something on health or otherwise happens not because we wish it but because life happens. At this point, it may be too late, due to the term pre existing condition. So please think again and instead of asking; “why buy life insurance?” Ask yourself-what kind of name and legacy do you want to leave behind? The choice is yours.

When searching for home and auto insurance, a consumer has many options as to who to do business with. Television commercials and online advertisements abound in today’s society. Everyone needs insurance, and insurance companies are battling for clients.

In the world of insurance agents, there are two types of agents: captive agents and independent agents.

An insurance agent that is captive represents one company and independent agents represent multiple companies. The largest and most well-known insurance companies (All State, Farmers, American Family) go only through their own “captive” agents. Other well known but less known insurance companies (Met Life, Travelers, Hartford, Progressive, etc) go through independent insurance agents.

When you walk into an office of a captive insurance agent, he/she will quote you with the one company that they carry. When you walk into an office of an independent insurance agent, he/she will shop all the companies that he/she represents and set you up with the company that matches you the best in terms of lowest rates and best coverages.

The insurance market is very complex. When looking for a rate quote, there are numerous factors which these companies must consider. Because some companies look at different factors in different ways, insurance rates can greatly vary for one person between different companies.

For example, let’s say that Suzie wants an auto insurance quote. She has a pretty good driving record. She has not had any major violations in the past few years. Two years ago, when she was at college and would travel to her parents’ home and back on the weekends, she picked up two defective vehicle tickets.

The officer could have given her speeding tickets, but he reduced them down for her.

When Suzie went to get an insurance rate quote, she found that most insurance companies will give her higher insurance rates because of those two tickets. She would have to pay hundreds of more dollars each year. As her agent continued searching for her, he found an insurance company that would not rate her higher because of the tickets. This particular company does not rate ‘defective vehicles’ as anything abnormal, thus though she had two tickets, she had access to the very lowest rates the company had to offer and she was able to save hundreds of dollars each year.

If Suzie had gone to an agent who was captive, he would have set her up with the one rate that he had to offer. She would have missed out on the money that she was going to save.

The more proactive the insurance agent is, the more he can search for ways to save his clients money. It is a good idea to not only seek an independent insurance agent, but a very proactive insurance agent. Understanding the difference between these two types of insurance agents can save you a lot of money on your insurance. colorado insurance insurance.

Most landlords try to screen their potential boarders but even if you do this, you can’t make a full assessment of their personality with just a simple interview. Sure, you can do a background check on them to make sure they don’t have any criminal records but you can’t really gauge how capable they will be in taking care of your home.

This is why it is an excellent move for any landlord to take out a house insurance policy for the homes they are renting out. Even if the tenant turns out to be a careless slob who leaves stains everywhere or constantly leaves the doors unlocked, practically inviting robbers inside, your home will be protected against any damages they may make.

Typically, a rental house insurance policy will not cover the furniture and other items inside the house since those belong to the tenant. If anything gets stolen, it will be their loss and you will not be liable to them since your house insurance only covers the actual structure and fixtures in the house.

An issue you need to clarify before taking out a rental house insurance policy is whether the home will be left vacant for long periods of time. Usually, house insurance coverage will not include damages or losses that occurred more than 30 days after the house has been vacant.

This issue could be a big deal for landlords because some tenants might leave for a long summer vacation without informing you, leaving the home unoccupied and uncovered by house insurance. Another situation is when you are between tenants. There could be slow seasons when it will take a long time to find new tenants after the previous occupants have left. To avoid these situations, you can find house insurance policies that allow up to 90 days for your home to be vacant.

Many rental house insurance companies will be interested to know about the people who are renting your home. If the occupants are a homely middle-aged couple who regularly attends Thursday night bingo, you will probably be able to get excellent coverage on your house insurance policy. However, if your tenants are members of a college rock band who are more likely to go on a destructive rampage, you will surely have a difficult time finding a company to give you a decent Homeowner Insurance Guide coverage.

Of course these are extreme examples but you get the idea. More damage means more claims and more claims means more cash out for the insurance company. In fact it means more cash out for you as well because will have to shoulder the excess from your claims.

To summarize this all, you just need to find the right house insurance policy for your rental home and you can make your rental business grow in no time.

Rent to own houses have grown in popularity today. There’s a reason for this: Mortgage lenders have tightened their lending standards, and the average credit score of consumers’ has fallen. Rent to own houses, though, give credit-strapped buyers the opportunity to eventually purchase a home. They also give homeowners, who can’t nab high-enough prices by selling their homes in today’s down economy, the chance to earn at least some rental income from the houses that they can’t unload.

But rent to own houses do come with their own risks, and it’s up to the renters themselves to do the advance research that will help them avoid these risks.

Minnesota Public Radio recently ran a report on the booming rent to own market. The report said that while this market provides opportunities to both homeowners and hopeful homeowners, it also comes with potential pitfalls. The biggest problem, according to the story, is that rent to own arrangements are largely unregulated by government agencies.

Rent to Own Homes: An Unregulated Industry

State lawmakers in Minnesota are now working on legislation that would provide regulations for owners and renters entering into a rent to own agreement. But even if this legislation eventually passes, participants in rent to own agreements in most of the rest of the country will still have to navigate the process without the benefit of regulations.

Renters, then, who don’t want to fall into disputes with their new landlords, need to clarify the exact terms of any rent to own agreement in which they enter.

At their most basic, rent to own arrangements are relatively simple. Renters sign a lease, much like an apartment lease, to rent a house for a set period of time, usually a year. After a certain period, it could be as long as three to five years or as soon as the end of the first year-long lease, renters have the option to purchase the home that they had been renting.

Along the way, landlords reserve a portion of each month’s rent for a possible down payment should the renters decide to purchase the home.

The Benefits of Rent to Own Houses

The benefits of this arrangement are obvious: Homeowners earn rental income, and also secure a potential buyer for their residences. Renters learn what it’s like to live in a home and gain the time they need to improve their credit scores.

The potential pitfalls, though, are serious. The Minnesota Public Radio story, for instance, highlighted the case of a couple who were in a rent to own arrangement. When their house fell into foreclosure, the couple lost all the extra money they had set aside for a possible down payment. The couple also had disputes with their landlord over who was responsible for making major repairs with the house, the landlord or the renters.

The key to making a rent to own arrangement work is for both homeowners and renters to spell out exactly what is expected of everyone. Homeowners should explain exactly how much money they’ll be setting aside for a possible down payment from every rent check. They should also clarify what happens to this money if renters decide not to purchase the house or if the house falls into foreclosure. Both parties should also agree about who is responsible for repairs, lawn mowing, and other upkeep.

The Rent to Own Alternative

Rent to own houses can serve as a much-needed alternative for both homeowners and renters in today’s challenging real estate market. But unless both sides of the rent to own agreement are forthright with what is expected, the rent to own arrangement can lead to a long, and unpleasant, dispute. By doing their research before signing any papers, renters can take a huge step to avoiding such a negative situation.