Life settlement groups

"The cash surrender values are going to have to be increased by insurance companies in response to the efforts of life settlement groups."
 
With the unprecedented recession, we've seen many people have to find different and creative ways to raise money to support them and their families.  This has proven doubly true for senior citizens, especially those who have retired or are about to.  Examining things more closely, it becomes frightening.  Unemployment is nearing all-time highs and it's been particularly harsh on seniors who may not be able to find any work or as much work as they need.  Those seniors who are already retired are having an even harder time getting back into the working world.  So income is at a low level.  On the other hand, the expenses for seniors are high.  Healthcare and prescription drug costs have been increasing faster than anticipated.  These factors combine for a mix that present an unstable situation.  With the markets taking a beating, real estate being hard to sell, and the costs of living going up, it's been hard on everyone. 

Fortunately, seniors have some assets that other people don't have.  Many seniors have whole life policies that have cash value.  These can be surrendered for a cash value through the life insurance provider, but life settlement groups can offer a better alternative than the insurance companies can  In general terms, life policies are purchased to protect the wealth of a family along generational lines or to protect the well being of a spouse.  Those are noble goals, but since senior citizens are living longer they may need to utilize that money for their own current needs that extend beyond wealth planning.  As stated, life insurance policies have a cash value, but the value of policies isn't typically large compared to how much the policy is worth.  For years insurance companies could do this because they didn't have competition and their clients had to accept the cash surrender value or not. 

"Over half of policies are worth significantly more in working with life settlement groups."
 
Life settlement groups are third parties that buy up unwanted policies and provide an alternative to what the insurance companies are offering.  With the fact that 50% of all life insurance policies are worth more than their cash surrender value, many people are missing out on money they could've received by not exploring life settlement groups.  In many cases, life settlement groups provide a much higher value than would be received through the insurance company.  It is a given that most of the people that take these options are generally older.  Life settlement groups have the greatest discrepancies among people well over the age of 70.  In response to the insurance companies, life settlement groups have become a billion dollar industry.  Life settlement groups are now discussed by all reputable financial planners and are becoming more and more mainstream every passing day.  Common sense shows that what life settlement groups offer is calculated by the open market which is inherently more fair than the actuarial tables of the insurance companies.  At this point, the biggest concern that seniors have is in dealing with a third party life settlement group that they have never done business with in the past.  Certainly their insurance company may seem more familiar, but that doesn't guarantee they are offering a better deal.  The smartest consumers should compare both.  Seniors should look at the surrender value that their insurance company is offering and contrast that to what life settlement groups are proposing.  By letting the market decide it will help all consumers in the long run.