Life settlements — the sale of a life insurance policy for significantly more than if the policy is simply lapsed or surrendered – may not be widely known, but they are an important tool for financial advisors when helping senior clients and are becoming more well-known and recommended by financial professionals.
A life settlement makes sense for seniors who — after years of premium payments – are faced with the lapse or surrender of that policy. It could be that the policy’s cash value has been depleted and the premiums are too high, the needs for the policy have changed, or the senior and their family need money in retirement.
When discussing life settlements with a senior client, their adult children are often involved. Adult children are not only providing physical and emotional support, they are also providing financial support.
The following are three pieces of advice for engaging with the adult child of a senior client who is thinking about a life settlement.
This article originally appeared on ThinkAdvisor.