Retirement Planning
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July/August 2004
Commentary - Hans H. Mathisen
How's Your Group Life Insurance? - LIFE LETTER for
July emphasizes the many shortfalls of employee group plans generally.
A Group Life Insurance is a plan the insured (you?) has no control
over. Most of us like to be in control of our affairs. Only by having
individual
life insurance coverage will you be in the driver's seat. Please contact
me for details.
How Will You Handle a Critical Illness? - The August issue of LIFE LETTER points out the financial hazards connected with suffering a Critical Illness, such as a stroke or a heart attack, to name but two of the over twenty medical conditions covered by most C. I. contracts. You may want to get more information about this unique, new type of insurance. Please call.
THE STOCK MARKETS - Year-to-date (as of July 23, 2004) performance of the major stock
indexes is rather tame: The S & P TSX Composite is up by 1.98%.
The Dow Jones is at -4.70%; the S & P 500 Index is negative 2.31%,
and NASDAQ has decreased by 7.70%.
The performance of the European and Asian major indexes is basically
neutral..
WALTON INTERNATIONAL - The May/June, 2004 edition of my Newsletter contained information about this exceptional investment opportunity. Imagine: by investing in real estate within the city limits of Calgary and Edmonton, Walton investors have averaged an 18% per annum return since 1978. At 18%, money invested doubles every 4 years. Something for you to consider in order to diversify your portfolio? Please call for more information..
Now, to my bi-monthly update on two of my personal
portfolios, which are very carefully contructed, based on my own knowledge
of the markets and my risk tolerance:
PORTFOLIO #1: March 7, 2003 to July 23, 2004: The return is 20.2
PORTFOLIO #2: April 28,2003 to July 23,2004: The return is 27.5
More information about this investment strategy is available on request.
HAPPY INVESTING!
Sincerely,
Hans Mathisen
How's Your Group Life Insurance?
Owen is married and has two children. He
has been working at the same company for over five years and relies
heavily on his employee group plan
for his life insurance needs. A new single co-worker got the same
benefits after only 90-days and Owen wonders if his group insurance
can let him down.
Owen learned that group benefit plans treat all employees the same, regardless of individual needs. Coverage amounts may be determined by income, but a single worker with the same earnings will get the same benefit as a married worker with children.
Many plans offer the option of additional
coverage for extra premium. However, the total amount of coverage
available is limited and may not
fully meet Owen's needs.
A group employee insurance plan is a contract between an employer, union or association and an insurance company to provide protection for the employees or members. Because he is not a party to the contract, Owen has no rights under the plan other than to name a beneficiary.
The group plan can be changed at any time
without Owen's approval. His employer may decide to switch insurance
companies, reduce coverage or
cancel it completely. Even though he is the insured individual, Owen
has no voice in these decisions.
Group insurance is year-to-year coverage. The insurance company can change the policy on the renewal date. It can increase the premiums, reduce the coverage or refuse to renew altogether.
The group insurance Owen has is low cost
for two reasons. First, it covers him while he is least likely to
die, while he is still able to work. Second, his
employer pays a good portion of the premium. Any life insurance premiums
paid for by his boss are a taxable benefit to Owen.
When Owen quits, gets fired or retires,
he will lose his coverage. Some companies, associations or unions
may continue a portion of the benefits for a short time after retirement.
He will get an opportunity
to convert his life insurance coverage to a personal plan, but his
options will be limited and can be very expensive. However, it is
unlikely that Owen will feel he can afford it if he has just lost
his job.
Whether he is employed or not, Owen's family will need money to pay off bills and provide income when he dies. He realizes that his group plan is a nice perk while he is working, but it does not fully meet all of his needs.
The answer for Owen is to obtain personal
life insurance now and coordinate his total coverage needs with his
group plan. He will have the option of increasing or decreasing coverage
as he sees fit.
Owen can use it as collateral for a loan, perhaps to start a business
of his own. With the purchase of a permanent life insurance policy,
he can use the cash build-up as an emergency fund in the future. In
short,
Owen will have a policy that he controls and will be in effect whether
he is working or not.
Want life insurance that you control?
Call Hans Mathisen today at (306)242-7042.
or email - hans@mathisen.ca
Copyright © 2004 Bowen Financial Inc. All rights reserved
How Will You Handle a Critical Illness?
Ryan had a heart attack and was very fortunate to survive. He was able to return to work after about eight weeks, but was forced to take a less stressful job with lower salary. This made it difficult to maintain the mortgage payments, so Ryan and his family moved to a smaller home in a less desirable neighborhood.
lan was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
He needed full time care after it spread to his bones and it became
incurable several months later. His wife
had no choice but to quit her job and care for him. Adjustments had
to be made. The family had to give up hockey, gymnastics, movies,
video games, all their extra-curricular activities. Because of the
reduced family income, they were forced to go into debt just to make
ends meet.
Sarah became paralyzed and was confined to a wheel chair. Her disability income plan provided her with an income, but it wasn't enough to cover the costs of renovating her home for wheel chair access or the modifications to her vehicle to get around.
The Heart And Stroke Foundation claims
that more than 150,000 Canadians will have a heart attack this year.
Three quarters of them will survive five years or longer. The Canadian
Cancer Society reports
that this year over 130,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer
and over half those with common cancers will survive five years or
longer.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) says that only about
3% of home foreclosures are due to death, but some 48% are due to
serious illness.
There is a better way to deal with the financial turmoil that arises when someone suffers a serious illness like cancer, heart attack or stroke. It's called Critical Illness Insurance. It helps people get on with their lives by giving them the financial resources to maintain the hfestyle and independence they had before they got sick.
If you contract one of the diseases or conditions specified in a Critical Illness Insurance policy, you receive a lump sum of up to $2,000,000. The exact amount, of course, depends on the coverage you choose. Critical Illness Insurance pays a benefit even if you are still able to work and can cover a long list of illnesses and conditions.
There are no restrictions placed on the use of an insurance payout. It's up to you ... pay-off debts; seek medical treatment in another country; pay for extra medical expenses; take a vacation or time off work; replace lost income; modify your home or vehicle if necessary; maintain your independence.
When it comes to Critical Illness Insurance, Canada is unique. At present, we are the only country in the world where you can get this type of insurance with guaranteed premiums for the entire contract period. Anywhere else, the premiums can be adjusted due to claims experience. But this may change. It was recently reported in the Globe and Mail that "it's widely expected that premiums could rise by something in the area of fifteen percent this year, and there's even speculation that less favourable policy terms may be on the way."
Want to protect your lifestyle in case of Critical Illness?
Call Hans Mathisen today at (306)242-7042.
or email - hans@mathisen.ca
Copyright © 2004 Bowen Financial Inc. All rights reserved
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Mutual confidence is the power that binds together all harmonious human relationships.
Mathisen Financial,
Inc.
335 Redberry Road
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7K 4W5
Bus. (306) 242-7042 Fax. (306) 242-4314
Email: hans@mathisen.ca