Union Hill Financial Planning

Wow. I just got a quote for an engineer who previously carried term insurance through IEEE’s program with NY Life.   My broker found A+ rated coverage for the same terms at 50% of the price. That’s incredible.  If you think you’re getting a great deal via group rates, I may be able to help you find twice as good a deal.

The caveat?  You may not be familiar with the brand  name of your new insurer.   It will be an A+ rated company (A.M. Best’s ratings), but these companies don’t advertise on TV.

If you look at the financial strength of these A+ insurers, it’s stronger than the companies you see on TV.  My conclusion?  That’s how they save you money.  (Plus they don’t have commission salespeople in every neighborhood.)

Note: I am not licensed to sell insurance.  I am not an insurance salesman.  I get no commissions.  I help my clients find insurance.  This is one service I provide as a part of financial advice for a fee.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only planner in Alpharetta/Milton and a tax preparer at H&R Block. 770 361-3139 website

Couples can cut the cost of long term care insurance by purchasing policies at the same time and thus be entitled to a “couples discount” that is often 40% of the full premium.

Example.  Susan already has a decent policy but her employer can’t help her get better coverage for her husband.  When applying for a policy for her husband, they should make it a “couples” policy with for a very small benefit (like $50/day for 2 years) for Susan.  The “couples discount” will be far greater than the cost of Susan’s additional coverage.

With Georgia’s implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act, it’s tougher to transfer assets as a part of Medicaid planning, so LTCI has grown in importance as part of your financial plan.  Call me and I’ll help you shop for policies and compare apples to apples from the different insurers.

Mike Dayoub is a tax preparer and financial planner in North Fulton, Georgia.  770 361-3139 website

Some Georgia retirees on the State Health Benefit Plan noticed a jump in premiums this month (July, 2009).

It’s probably because they’re not enrolled in Medicare Part B. For about 8 months the State of Georgia tried to warn retirees who weren’t enrolled in Part B that their Health Benefit Plan premiums would have a significant increase in July 2009.

The increase is because the state is trying to address a rising liability Georgia is carrying for retiree health benefits. I think the rationale is those retirees who don’t need Medicare Part B can pay more to help address the $16B liability Georgia is carrying.

If you’re a State of Georgia retiree who isn’t signed up for Medicare Part B, you can do it during the next Special Enrollment Period (SEP). That period may be available to you if you’re getting married or a new dependent. Otherwise, the SEP is during the Open Enrollment Period, which this year will be from October 10 to November 10, 2009.

Call me if you got burned by this change. You might save money and surprises if you have a good financial planner keeping a lookout for changes to your retirement benefits.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only financial planner in the Milton/Alpharetta area of Georgia. Website.

P.S.  Here’s last year’s booklet for SHBP info.  The one for 2010 will get published around September.

Over 70 percent of boomers rate their health, and spouse’s health, as good or excellent.

However, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, 50 percent of boomers have high blood pressure and two in five are obese. (source:  Energizer Holdings)

Clearly, there’s a bit of denial going on here.   It would be sad if that denial extends into their assessment of how likely they are to need long term nursing care.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only financial planner in Milton, GA. Website.

Often it is.

Many employers are offering minimal or simplified medical underwriting.  This means if you have past medical history which would make your LTC insurance difficult or expensive to obtain, an employer-sponsored policy often will still grant you coverage.  Take the policy, especially if you’re in your 50’s and it’s not too expensive.

Of course, call me for a full price comparison and to discuss what your risks are.  Some people shouldn’t spend on long term care insurance.  Others have assets to preserve and want to make sure illness does not harm their family’s security.

Caveats on employer-sponsored LTC insurance:  Often these policies don’t offer important options such as

• inflation protection
• the option of in-home care (vs. facility care)
• “good health” or partner discounts.

I can get you the lowest premium for Georgia LTC. As a fee only planner, I use a low-load brokerage to get the absolute lowest premiums for your long term care policy. That’s because the brokerage trims the commission down to almost nothing, and I don’t get a commission like you’d pay from a “fee-based” advisor or agent.

If your net worth is between $500K and $2M, Long Term Care insurance (LTCi) is needed to avoid draining assets your family would need.  Above $2M, consider yourself “self-insured”.

With the market fallback, many clients suddenly find themselves no longer sufficiently “self-insured”.  The best age to begin buying LTCi is usually in your 50’s.

Want to know the value of LTCi?  Consider the price of a year of long term care averages $65,000, and above $100,000 in many metro areas.

Likelihood of Using LTC Insurance (For 65-year-Old Policyholders)

For more than 1 year – 44.9%
For more than 2 years – 10.6%
For more than 3 years – 5.9%
For more than 4 years – 3.4%
For more than 5 years – 2.9%

Source: National Underwriter Life & Health, June 16, 2008.

As a fee-only planner, I can help you shop for the lowest rates from nearly all the major LTCi carriers such as Berkshire (Guardian), Genworth, John Hancock, Mass Mutual, and MetLife, without all the commissions to agents. I am your best source for Georgia LTC.

P.S. Consider buying LTCi for your parents or in-laws if you and your spouse would miss work income to take care of them.  Your siblings might split the cost of the premiums with you.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only registered investment advisor and tax preparer in Milton, GA.  Website.

The average age of an individual buying long-term care insurance is falling.  In 2000, it was 67.   In 2008, some 53% of individual buyers were between ages 55 and 64.

76% of buyers in 2008 opted for coverage for a claim lasting five years or less (as opposed to a policy with unlimited duration for benefits).

31.5% opted for a daily benefit between $100 and $149. “In current dollars, that amounts to between $36,500 and $54,385 in a yearly benefit,”

Summarized Study Data from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance

Age of Buyers (2008)
Under 45 7%
45 to 54 24%
55 to 64 53%
65 and Over 16%

Daily Benefit (2008)
Less than $100 6.5%
$100 to $149 31.5%
$150 to $199 35%
$200 and Over 27%

Benefit Period (2008)
2 Years 7%
3 Years 30%
5 Years 24%
Unlimited 13%

Premium Paid (2008)
Age Low High Average
35 - 44 $637 $2,830 $1,650
45 - 54 $1008 $6,440 $1,900
55 - 64 $844 $7,400 $2,150
65 + $1,883 N/A $3,350

Access to the report here.

Call me if you want an explanation for what this data means.

One thing the report doesn’t say:  fee-only planners have access to much lower rates for the same policies. I am your best source for Georgia LTC.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only registered investment advisor and tax preparer in Milton, GA.  Website.

Ratings and riskiness of insurers have changed dramatically this year.

As a fee-only planner, I receive zero commissions or incentives from ANY insurance company, so I have no incentive to varnish the truth.

I can give you their ratings, assets and liabilities, their bond quality and income and earnings.  I’ll tell you how they compare to the others.

Also, most consumers don’t know fee-only planners have access to low-load insurance policies. This means we can eliminate surrender charges and also many of the costs that leech cash value build-up from insurance policies and annuities.   Before you buy any more insurance, contact me and I’ll find you a better deal.

Mike Dayoub is a fee-only registered investment advisor in Milton, GA.  Website.

Addendum: Let me save you some work.

Wondering whether your insurer can pay off a “guaranteed” annuity or life insurance policy? The Georgia Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association (GAIGA) guarantees your annuities up to $100,000 in payments. They guarantee life insurance policies up to $300K, but the cash value only $100K. There is verbiage about a maximum of 3 different policies of $100K each, but fine print often renders your guarantee back to $100K.

So, does the GAIGA audit insurers on their ability to pay? No. There are some capital requirements for insurers in Georgia, but the GAIGA does not maintain ratings or audit. They simply wait for the insurer to inform the GAIGA that they’re slipping into insolvency.

What happens then? Georgia requires insurers to participate in an insolvency pool. The Georgia insolvency pool is silent this year on the new levels of risk insurers have sustained due to the market downturn and the higher chance some of the guaranteed annuities are at risk.

What does this mean to you? GAIGA directs you to the ratings bureaus and cautions you to do your own research. So, go to A.M. Best and check out the ratings, right? Good luck. After you get signed up as a member on A.M. Best, you’ll see there are 20 companies listed under Genworth and 17 companies listed under John Hancock.

Call me, and I’ll get you the correct ratings and some meaningful analysis.