Cover your bases with insurance planning

Insurance is a foundational part of a comprehensive wealth strategy, and key to helping protect your family, business and long-term plans – especially for life’s curveballs and unpredictable moments.

At Independent Financial Services, we help clients evaluate insurance as part of a coordinated financial plan, not as a standalone product decision. Here, we believe that the decisions you make around insurance coverage should be well-informed, intentional, coordinated and revisited over time as your life unfolds.

How insurance fits into the bigger picture

Insurance planning is all about managing risks, or, in other words, shielding you against life events that could disrupt income, affect the people you love most or threaten the progress of your long-term goals.

In support of your full financial picture, here are some of the types of insurance we can help you consider:

Life insurance

Life insurance is designed to provide financial protection for the people and priorities that depend on you. It can help replace income for loved ones, cover final expenses or even support wealth transfer and legacy-related goals.

There’s no universal rule of thumb about how much cover is appropriate – the answer is, it depends on your unique circumstances, household expenses and existing assets, benefits, debt or liabilities.

There are several types of life insurance, each designed to address different planning needs. Common categories of life insurance include:

• Term life insurance
• Permanent life insurance
• Variable life insurance

Long-term care planning

We believe that long-term care is an important planning consideration that’s typically not covered by traditional health insurance but can have a significant impact on both your retirement income and family responsibilities.

Long-term care matters because care needs can arise earlier than many people expect and costs can heavily affect financial independence. By planning ahead, you can help preserve what you’ve worked hard to build while holding more of the decision-making power.

Insurance coverage can include in-home care, assisted living or nursing facility care. We help clients explore whether long-term care insurance or other related strategies are the right approach.

Business insurance

For business owners, insurance coverage needs can vary widely depending on the structure and goals of your company.

We understand that owners are responsible for planning that extends beyond personal protection – for liability, property, workers' compensation and more. We also recognize the importance of coverage like Key Person Insurance to help support your business from the impact of losing a critical individual.

To support the stability and continuity of your business, our focus is to help you navigate through these considerations as part of a broader financial or succession planning discussion.

Here’s how we can help

Insurance decisions don’t have to be overwhelming. A thoughtful conversation can help bring clarity to what the right coverage looks like for you, your family or your business.

We can help you review your existing coverage, identify gaps or areas of overlap and help you coordinate your insurance with your investments and estate planning goals. Our team can also work alongside insurance carriers and other professionals when appropriate to help ensure your goals stay on track.

Life Insurance policies have exclusions and/or limitations. The cost and availability of life insurance depend on factors such as age, health and the type and amount of insurance purchased. As with most financial decisions, there are expenses associated with the purchase of life insurance. Policies commonly have mortality and expense charges. In addition if a policy is surrendered prematurely, there may be surrender charges and income tax implications. Guarantees are based on the claims paying ability of the insurance company.

Long-term care:

These policies have exclusions and/or limitations. Guarantees are based on the claims paying ability of the issuing company. Long Term Care Insurance or Asset Based Long Term Care Insurance Products may not be suitable for all investors. Surrender charges may apply for early withdrawals and, if made prior to age 59 ½, may be subject to a 10% federal tax penalty in addition to any gains being taxed as ordinary income. The cost and availability of Long Term Care insurance depend on factors such as age, health, and the type and amount of insurance purchased. Please consult with your financial professional when considering insurance options.