At First United, we understand that conservative retirement planning is important and that everyone's needs are different.  This is why we offer a variety of products from over 150 banks, investment firms and insurance carriers.  Most importantly, we recognize that the concepts and plans that shape your retirement portfolio are more important than the products themselves and we help you conceptualize your own best-fit plan.

Read about some of our available products and personalized concepts:

Using "Cash Value" from your life insurance to purchase an annuity for income, structured settlement, long term care or life insurance.

Did you know that the cash value of your life insurance does not pass on to your beneficiaries? If you have a $500,000 life insurance policy with a $1 or $400,000 cash value, your beneficiaries only receive a maximum of $500,000. (The language can be hard to understand – some people are told that the insurance companies pay your beneficiaries the difference between the face value and the cash value plus the cash value.) The cash value is basically kept by the insurance company. Don't let this happen to you.

An example of what we recommend: A $500,000 life insurance policy with $150,000 of cash value is earning 5% interest which is approximately $7,500 per year. Rather than surrendering and cashing out the life insurance, we recommend taking a loan against the policy of $100,000 at a rate of 7% which is $7,000 per year. The interest on the loan is being covered by the interest earned and you now have $100,000 to purchase an annuity or structured settlement. You can use the income from the annuity for personal income or you can fund another life insurance policy for your beneficiaries.

Annuity – There are literally hundreds of these products offered by insurance companies that allow tax deferred growth and several options to receive a guaranteed payment stream for a specific period of time.  Some annuities earn up to 7.5% interest during their growth years plus a deposit bonus of up to 25%.  Typical annuities have 3, 5, 7 or 10 year terms.  Annuities also have a death benefit which can be payable to your beneficiaries.  Be sure to ask us about the "Income for Life" feature too.

Structured Settlement – While it may seem complicated, this is basically an income stream that someone has traded for a lump sum of cash.  You are able to purchase the payment stream and receive 5% to 7% as a guaranteed interest rate.  These products can be extremely safe and come with various terms from 3 to 25 years.

Life Insurance with Long Term Care – This product is an affordable way to have two products with one policy.  These life insurance policies allow you to surrender all or part of the policy to cover long term care if needed.  For example, let's say you took out a $300,000 life insurance policy and a few years later you needed long term care.  The insurance company could offer to reduce the policy death benefit to $200,000 for $40,000 cash.  (The amount of cash you receive for the amount of the policy you surrender is determined by the insurance company and based on the severity of the condition.)

With so many options available, it does not make sense to sit back and wait to see what happens.  In any economic situation there are options available that make sense for every family and every budget.  

At First United Services, we are committed to helping our clients find the best retirement solution that fits their future needs while staying within their current budgets.