X-Message-Number: 16058
From: 
Date: Mon, 16 Apr 2001 23:36:59 EDT
Subject: Re: Future of Insurance

In a message dated 4/13/2001 5:01:02 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
 writes:
Hello, Mark Plus and others.

Rudi Hoffman here, writing from Daytona Beach, Florida, Paradise.
Thought I'd put my input in regarding the following rather good question by 
Mark Plus:

<< From: "Mark Plus" <>
 Subject: The future of my cryonics insurance
 Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 19:23:40 -0700
 
 Since 1990 I have been using a whole life policy from New York Life to pay 
 for my cryonic suspension arrangements with Alcor, the current death benefit 
 being $116,000 (including paid-up additions).  I understand from talking to 
 my insurance agent that after having paid premiums on this policy for eleven 
 years, I can now opt to have all future premiums paid from out of the 
 dividends of the policy.  The death benefit would decline, but it would 
 never drop below $100,000.  Doing so would free up the $1200 a year that I 
 had been spending on premiums.
 
 Would it be better to continue to pay that monthly premium so that the death 
 benefit continues to increase, or should I instead take that money and 
 invest it in some other way that would be beneficial towards my long-term 
 survival, like accumulating a fund for my remote standby fees?
 
 I would welcome some suggestions.
 
 Trans-millennially yours,
 
 Mark Plus, Expansionary
 "Working to make death obsolescent in the 21st Century."
 
  >>
Dear Mark, etc. 
I assume from your question that you are "grandfathered" in at $100,000 or 
some figure under the current $120,000 for full body suspension.  

So, if your suspension is indeed "Guaranteed" to be paid for from your 
current life insurance with no further premiums, you have some great choices.

Putting further premiums into your New York Life policy will indeed increase 
the cash value.  However, the increase will most certainly not be as 
substantial as it could be if you would elect to take your $1200 and 
consistently place it into an "IRA" or "ROTH IRA" qualified mutual fund.

There are often many ways of looking at issues, as the readers of Cryonet 
attest.  People of goodwill and intelligence can differ radically in their 
views.  

Fortunately,  insurance and investments is in some ways a little more 
straightforward than some issues, although still far from being "opinion 
neutral".

To give you a bit of my background/ credibility from which you may determine 
whether to give any credence to the above advice, you may be interested in 
the following.

I am an independent Certified Financial Planner, with my own Financial 
Planning firm.  I have sold and studied life insurance and investments for 24 
years.  I have become fairly successful by most people's standards following 
my own advice. 

I currently write more life insurance to fund cryosuspension than anyone else 
on the planet.  

Many of the fine posters and lurkers on this board are my clients and 
friends.  

(Sometimes, Steven Lacher, but not often even their wives/girlfriends sign 
up...but not very often!:))

Hope this helps.  

Rudi Hoffman 

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