I’m a 35m and my wife is a 38f with 2 daughters ages 11 and 7. I make roughly 250k/year and my wife makes roughly 35k/year. We have around 200k in total debt the majority being the mortgage. We have 175k in an investment account, I have 60k in my Roth IRA, my wife has 20k in her Roth IRA, and i have around 215k in my 401k that is 75% Roth. I have 21k in my HSA as well that we max out every year. I just want to make sure we are over insured, under insured, or just right. The VUL policies are all invested 80/20 stock to bond with 10% of the bonds in high yield bonds. We have the following life insurance in-force.

AIG/Corebridge
30 year term for wife with 500,000 death benefit expires 2049 and is convertible until expiration
20 year term for myself with 750,000 death benefit expires 2039 and convertible until expiration
VUL with 250,000 death benefit and 12,000 in cash value started in 2020 for me adding up to the MEC limit every year

Prudential
265,000 increasing death benefit on wife with 15,000 in cash value
100,000 VUL with death benefit for 11 year old with 880 in cash value currently adding the max allowable up to MEC limit
100,000 VUL with death benefit for 7 year old with 595 in cash value adding max allowable up to MEC limit

Nationwide
Care matters II for myself with LTC inflation rider 10 pay started in 2023 done paying for in 2033 16k/month LTC benefit for 4 years at age 80 with 60k death benefit
Care matters II for wife with LTC inflation rider 10 pay started in 2023 done paying in 2033 15k/month LTC benefit for 4 years at age 80 with 60k death benefit

Group term
My employer uses met life for our group term and hers uses Lincoln.
2,000,000 death benefit for me I pay for with 380,000 and 100,000 death benefits I don’t have to pay for through my employer
100,000 death benefit for wife through my employer
25,000/child through my employer
150,000 death benefit on me through wife’s employer
50,000 on wife through her employer

Hey everyone,

I recently decided to close my art store. I was wondering a few things. The art gallery I had was at a very slow mall and I decided I’d start selling insurance. Possibly getting my license in other states as well. I’m studying now and I’ve taken the exam 7 times in early February and March. Couldn’t pass it. Sucks and it’s embarrassing I was hoping to use it as a secondary income.

I’d prefer to travel and do calls while I’m in the road photographing and when I’m in town Interact I’m planning to get 4 licenses, life, health, auto, home.

I’ve seen the commissions, it’s way better than selling art or martial arts ( I own a school as well ).

In order to make a decent living, what should I expect? My other business art and martial arts mostly do better at night anyways.

1. What are the days like what should u be doing?
2. Do the leads from your insurance companies actually convert ?
3. From let’s say 9am-4pm what is a typical day and work flow. What should I be doing to max my results in earnings?
4. Since I’ll be an independent agent will have time to be on the road and travel ?
5. I’ve seen insurance agents that have files on there houses for years. Is there a CRM for this? Or does your agency usually store them.
6. I hear the busy season for health is November ? Because everyone is renewing, would the other licenses keep me afloat ?
7. Once I get my license what are some common mistakes beginners do so they don’t end up in a bad situation ?

Thanks everyone.

I'm 60 and the wife 65, she plans on working until age 70, me as well. We have about 11 years left on the mortgage at $1600 a month, no other big bills and cars are paid off. Biggest concern is one being able to keep paying the mortgage if the other passes. We could each probably do it without insurance but it would be tight.

I need some advice regarding bad faith practices by Transamerica Life Insurance Company.  

In 1988, we purchased a Permanent Whole Life Insurance Policy.  We were promised that this policy would provide life insurance protection for my husband's entire lifetime, provided that we paid our premiums in full, which we did.  Our policy has a guaranteed death benefit. The policy also has an additional rider for a “Death Benefit Safeguard Option” which ensures that the policy’s payout to beneficiaries is protected and guaranteed.

We later discovered that Transamerica reclassified our policy (behind our backs) as a Flexible Premium Universal Life Insurance Policy, which is not protected from cancellation. Transamerica then ascribed exorbitant cost-of-insurance-fees associated Universal Life Policies to the Whole Life policy that we purchased.  This reclassification was their justification for taking excessive cost-of-insurance fees from our policy, completely depleting the cash value. 

Transamerica eventually wiped out the entire $42,500 purchase value of our whole life policy with cost-of-insurance-fees.  They then sent us threatening letters resulting in three additional payments to them totaling $15,831. Transamerica then canceled our whole life insurance policy and failed to notify us. They confiscated our entire policy investment of $58,331 + accrued interest.

Transamerica had to settle multiple class-action lawsuits for hundreds of millions of dollars for these exact same infractions. We sought legal advice, and learned that we had a valid case against them for bad faith practices, misrepresentation, breach of contract, and failure to provide notification prior to cancellation.  However, our lawyer advised that Transamerica gets away with this because they can out-lawyer and outspend the average policyholder, as well as tying this up in court for years.  

I have reported them to every state and federal agency, attorney generals, and Insurance Commissioners, consumer protection sites, fraud lines, etc., without success.  Can anyone advise other actions that I may take to get justice?  Thank you in advance!

Hi everyone,

I’m a 27F, single, no kids, and recently attended a WFG event hosted by a good friend. During the presentation, they covered various financial topics, but the primary focus was life insurance and financial education.

Going into it, I already knew I wasn’t really interested in actively building an insurance business. However, I thought I could maybe provide referrals here and there, and I was told I could earn a 5% commission if I became licensed. That sounded like a decent side opportunity, so I paid the $130 fee to join.

Two days later, I attended a Zoom onboarding where I was signed up (which I also paid for) for XCEL Solutions and my state licensing exam.
During the onboarding, the EMD explained the compensation structure. From what I understood, associates start at a 30% commission level, can move up to 62% as a Marketing Director, and eventually max out at 82% as Senior Marketing Director.

Although I initially only planned to do referrals, I started thinking that if I changed my mind, I might want to become more active and build it as a part-time business. That’s when I was told that, in order to move from Associate (30%) to Marketing Director (62%), I would need to either:

Purchase a $1,000/month IUL policy through my upline (who is also my friend and the event host), or
Host my own financial event and recruit others.

The problem is that a $1,000/month IUL makes absolutely no financial sense for me. I’m single, have no children or dependents, and I can’t justify spending that kind of money simply to qualify for a higher commission level.

If I decided to become more involved, I would want to advance based on learning the business, helping clients, and producing results, not by buying a product that isn’t appropriate for my own financial situation.

So I’m curious:
Is this normal in WFG or in the insurance industry in general?
Is it common to be encouraged or required to buy a large policy from your upline to advance?
Is this a major red flag?

Should I just stay far, far away from this business altogether and cut my losses now?
I’d really appreciate honest opinions from people who have worked in insurance, WFG, or similar organizations. Thanks!

Been digging into this lately and honestly it feels kinda weird to even type it out.

Everyone always says life insurance is just for protection, right? Term for the cheap coverage, done. But then you hear these stories about people building cash value, using it as a side savings vehicle that grows tax-advantaged, borrowing against it... and it starts sounding pretty damn smart. Especially with how markets are these days.

I’ve got a decent income, some debts I’m knocking down, and I’m trying to get smarter with money without gambling it all on stocks. Started looking at whole life and IUL policies. The illustrations look solid on paper, but I know those are optimistic as hell. Am I the only one chasing this angle or are there folks here actually using permanent life insurance as part of their bigger plan 🤔 ? Not trying to get rich quick, just something stable that works long term. Would love to hear real experiences, good or bad.

Hi, I just became a dad, and my wife and I are looking for life insurance for our baby. We did set up a Trump account, and we want to do more. Like health insurance and life insurance. We just want to make sure that it could benefit my kid in the long run, and we want to have a reliable insurance company so we could put money in every month. Recommendation needed

Hi guys,

I am currently in the market for a 30-year term life insurance policy for my spouse. She has been approved for three different options, and I am having a hard time deciding:

1. Transamerica Trendsetter LB (Includes Chronic, Critical, and Terminal Illness living benefit riders)
2. Corebridge QoL (Quality of Life) (Includes Chronic, Critical, and Terminal Illness living benefit riders)
3. Prudential Essential Value Plus (Traditional policy, only includes a standard accelerated death benefit)

The Dilemma: Living Benefits vs. Financial Strength

The living benefits on the Transamerica and Corebridge policies sound incredibly attractive because it feels like you are getting much more comprehensive coverage. However, I spoke with another agent who claimed that living benefits are mostly a "marketing gimmick."

According to him:

• These claims are notoriously difficult to get approved.
• The insurance companies might significantly reduce or cancel the remaining death benefit after a payout because life expectancy has dropped, meaning you lose a major portion of your original coverage value.
• He strongly advised against mixing critical illness coverage with a standard life insurance policy.

Company Reputations & Ratings

Furthermore, the agent gave me pretty negative feedback about Transamerica. I did some independent research and found very mixed reviews—lots of complaints about poor customer service and a frustrating requirement that any policy changes must go through an agent rather than being handled directly online.

There is also a difference in financial strength. Prudential holds an "A+" AM Best rating, whereas Transamerica and Corebridge hold an "A" rating.

My Questions for the Group:

Prudential feels like a "no-brainer" if I want a rock-solid, highly rated, traditional policy. But the added perks of the other two are making me second-guess myself.

1. Should I prioritize the peace of mind that comes with living benefits, or stick to a highly-rated, simple traditional policy?
2. Does anyone have actual experience filing a living benefits claim with Transamerica or Corebridge? How smooth (or difficult) was the process?
3. Is Transamerica's customer service really as bad as the online reviews say?

I would incredibly appreciate any insight or advice you can share!

Hello everyone, I created a reddit account just so I could ask this question because I have no one else to ask.

But recently my father passed away and to keep it short, he was a very wealthy man.

Although we didnt have the best of relationships, I know for a fact I am listed as a beneficiary on at least one of his life insurance policies.

Even though I am a BEN on his policy, I am also not the only one, nor am I the next of kin.
So I do not have access to his policy number, his death certificate, or his social sec number.

His ceremony was recently though, so I imagine the next of kin will start the process shortly. Unfortunately, me and the next of kin have gotten into an argument, and they will no longer respond to me.

If I feel like the next of kin is going to be spiteful, and not give me any type of information on the life insurance policy, what should I do?

I was going to wait at least 2-3 months before I do anything drastic like get a lawyer. But if I am not being notified, and lets say the process has started, how would I notify the insurance company, and let them know that I am a beneficiary?

I hope this question makes sense, I'm not really sure how to ask it. But please let me know what you guys think I should do.

Thanks! Any and all information is very much appreciated!

I swear when I got into life insurance a few years back it was mostly FEX and a term policy here and there. I never saw so many ads for annuity funnels or IUL masterclasses.

Knowing and seeing in other agencies that brand new agents are setting up their clients with IULs and setting up their illustrations completely wrong is a major downside in the growth of these products

I think it is good that more and more people want something other then FEX but do you guys think the growth in these products will last after the 14% increase in Q1 this year?

Hi,

we are expecting our first kid soon, and we are(42m,35f) and looking into getting term life insurance.

I was wondering if there are any recommendations on a site to look up brokers? we are only interested in term life insurance at this point for 25 years or so since we are aiming for 1 more kid in the next 2-3 years.

i also have a question, on when would be the best time for the mother to apply for life insurance? should she wait a couple of months after giving birth to stabalize and recover? should I go ahead and get life insurance first since im older?

Thanks in advance!

I got quote from Gerber Life 1.5mill 10 year term is $96 a month and 30 I believe was $296 a month. Should I look elsewhere or is this reasonable? Also I think they check my health records through a partner, so I didn’t have to do a health test.

Hello. I am considering an IUL in the near future. The company I work for will be selling soon, and I will have quite a bit of money to utilize. Low 7-digits. I want to invest in real estate. I plan to use the IUL strictly for the cash benefit and not the death benefit. I have plenty of term life.

I understand that it's very easy to get screwed with huge fees/commissions. I am extremely careful and have a legal background. I would analyze the contract heavily. I will interview numerous brokers. I also understand that it generally takes 5-6 years to have access to the majority of the cash value. That is OK, I can wait. I'm 54 years old.

Is there anything else I should consider? Any reason to consider Whole Life other than fixed iincome? Thank you.

I (M, 60) very recently left a former employer.  I have a narrow window where I can convert my group life insurance ($550K, no cash value as I understand it) to whole or port it to term (not clear yet what kind of term, waiting for a transition call with MetLife to happen). I can also convert the AD&D ($600K).  I haven't gotten the rates yet on the whole side (I expect they will be a big multiple of the term rates). As a long-term cancer patient (and with any luck much much longer term ahead) I'm not going to be insurable elsewhere at least for the life. So it's one of these two or nothing. The AD&D rates are probably a rounding error comparatively.

Really, I'm thinking about the policy payouts as a nice thing for my survivors on top of other assets they would receive.  There's no mortgage or other major debt burden to offset.

What should I be asking or thinking about? Obviously I need to get my arms around the term option and is it level or not.  But for term is it basically like thinking about ROI for different death scenarios (I pay $x per month and get $y as payout)?

I have two separate life insurances. I have one whole life insurance and the other is term life insurance.

I have looked more into this as I am a mother battling brain cancer. I feel lost is some of the things I have read.

What is the difference? Is one better than the other?

Paid Up Joint Life with NML covering my mother and father. Policy renews July 1 each year, and the annual statement for last year, 2025, showed a net accumulated value of ~$21750.

Just got the 2026 statement which shows net accumulated value of ~$27000, but on a separate line for “past year’s accumulated value increase” says $1004. That math doesn’t add up, and it always has in the past on all my policies. Trying to figure out why there was about $4250 in additional cash value in the policy.

I haven’t put anything into the policy — it’s been paid up for years. The only thing I can think of is my dad died this year, and does that trigger some kind of lump sum being added to the policy even though it’s second-pay so it’s not paying out now? Called NML and they can’t figure it out — they show no additions other than interest and the dividend ($375), which they say matches the $1004 increase listed on the statement.

I’m certainly not mad about a random $4k extra, just trying to figure out where it appeared from. Any pros have any ideas?

23F super healthy already got medical exam, no children but planning for the future, and here is the policy is this good or bad?
$30,000 whole + 1mil term for 20 years for $75 a month

I was intercepted by Fortune Life agent whose name is Kristine Estrella at their mall booth under the guise of a "free promotional gift." The agent requested my BDO Credit Card solely for "ID verification" and "to check if the card is active."

Once she had the card, the agent used high-pressure verbal scripts and explicitly misrepresented the product as a "high-yield bank savings plan." She aggressively swiped my card without clearly explaining that it was a binding, long-term insurance contract.

Please wag kayo magpa luko sa mga nakikita niyo sa mga mall na may pa offer ng "free gift" kuno!