How will the debt crisis affect Bank On Yourself?
May 13, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 20 Comments
A question we are getting frequently right now is how safe is your money in a Bank On Yourself plan if the debt crisis in Europe continues and spreads to the United States?
Let’s start by answering the question…
Life insurance companies are highly regulated and required to maintain sufficient reserves to ensure they can pay all future claims.
They are regularly audited by the state insurance commissioners’ offices, and sometimes by dozens of states, to ensure they are on solid financial ground. And a multi-layer safety net exists to assure your money in a life insurance policy is secure.
You may be wondering, “What about AIG?” Many people missed the fact that AIG’s problems were caused by a holding company, not its life insurance subsidiaries. Their insurance companies were walled off from the problems, have always been solvent and did not receive a bailout.
The companies recommended by Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisors are among the financially strongest life insurance groups in the world.
They enjoy some of the strongest surplus positions in the industry, approximately double the industry average.
These companies are, in essence, owned by policyowners, rather than stockholders, which allows them to focus on the long-term interests of policy holders, rather than the short-term demands of Wall Street.
Here’s what the companies used for Bank On Yourself invest in:
Bank On Yourself: A financial plan you can count on
December 11, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · 24 Comments
Oh what a roller-coaster year this has been! Our entire financial system and economy almost fell off a cliff.
And while there are some hopeful signs of new life in the economy, this year has also brought us:
- Massive bailouts
- A tripling of an already-bloated federal deficit
- A falling dollar
- Rising foreclosures (and likely to spike as billions of dollars in ARM’s are now coming up for adjustment)
- Major banks and investment houses taking on three times (!) the risk they were before the collapse
So what do you think next year has in store for us?
No one really knows for sure. (Well, except maybe the folks at the Psychic Hotline.) So how do you prepare for a very uncertain future?
Here’s a quick quiz that may reveal an answer for you…
What’s the one financial asset that increased in value during the market crash of 2008? And in 1929? And in every period of economic boom and bust in between?
Answer: The product used for Bank On Yourself: Cash-value life insurance.
As I’ve mentioned, my husband Larry and I now have 18 Bank On Yourself policies. I’ve picked one of them to show you how a dividend-paying whole life policy like this can grow over time – even when the markets are plummeting. It’s a great example of how Bank On Yourself gives you the peace of mind that lets you sleep at night.
Here’s how much this plan has grown each year since the beginning of 2000, a period that includes not one, but TWO devastating market crashes. In four of these years, the S&P 500 was down for the year, as you can see in this side-by-side comparison:
If you had put $10,000 into an S&P 500 Index fund at the beginning of 2000, how much do you think it would be worth today?
Take a guess before you read on.
Video Overview: Bank On Yourself in a Nutshell
October 2, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · 116 Comments
We just completed a short, fast-paced video explaining what Bank On Yourself is and how it works, that I think you’ll find very helpful.
Click on the play button to discover…
- How Bank On Yourself grows your savings both predictably and guaranteed… even when stocks, real estate and other investments tumble
- How it can beat the pants off your best saving or investing method
- How the kind of policy used for Bank On Yourself is different from the ones Suze Orman, Dave Ramsey and 99.9% of all financial advisors talk about
- Why it’s an excellent alternative to traditional retirement plans
- How you can use it to get back what you pay for major purchases
- Where to find the money to get started
After you watch the video, I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback – so please speak your mind below.
Think you have to risk your money to get big returns? Hogwash!
April 28, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · 1 Comment
According to a recent comment on this blog, I’m full of it. Apparently, the author thinks I 
pulled the following statement out of my butt: “The reality is that the typical mutual fund investor has actually been losing 1 percent per year over the last 20 years, after adjusting for inflation.”
The statistic comes from the respected research firm, Dalbar, Inc., in its 15th annual study of mutual fund investor behavior. The study measures the returns investors actually get, not the returns they wished they got.
According to Lou Harvey, the president of Dalbar, the study once again revealed that
“investor returns lag what performance reports and prospectuses would lead one to believe is achievable. While those returns are theoretically achievable, the reality is that investors are not rational, and make buy and sell decisions at the worst possible moments.”
Let me paint a picture of how this happens: Lets say you do what the author (who calls himself “David K.”) of the rather nasty blog comment suggests and buy “simple index funds” and hold them for twenty years.
How financially secure are you? Take the 3 question test…
February 17, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · Leave a Comment
I often get asked by subscribers if they should sell some of their investments and put those funds in a Bank On Yourself plan.
Of course, everyone’s situation is different, and I can’t make that call for you.
But I can suggest a few questions to ask yourself, that can help guide you to a decision:
Bank On Yourself: The ultimate financial security blanket…
February 12, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · Leave a Comment
In my book on Bank On Yourself, you’ll meet Bill Liebler, one of the many folks who shared their experiences with Bank On Yourself. Bill gave me this update last week:
“As we’ve watched our IRA, 401(k), and stock portfolio dwindle, we are relieved we have a chunk of our net worth in our Bank On Yourself plan. It creates a place where our money is safe, the value didn’t drop, and in fact, has continued to increase every year. We really have been able to achieve peace of mind with this approach, and I strongly encourage everyone to look into it.”
I’m getting letters and emails echoing what Bill said every day, which is why I became convinced Americans have been brainwashed into believing they must accept risk, volatility and unpredictability to grow a sizable nest-egg.
Stay tuned, because I’m going to do a series of blog posts on why conventional saving, investing and financial planning methods don’t work… and what you can do about it.
Wall Street fails those planning to retire next year…
February 1, 2009 by Pamela Yellen · 2 Comments
Have you noticed that every day it seems we get a new reminder of just how badly Wall Street has failed us? One of the latest reminders is simply astonishing.
Do you know what a “Target Fund” is? This increasingly popular choice for 401(k) plans is a mutual fund billed as a one-stop solution for investors saving for retirement. You put your money in a single fund linked to the year in which you plan to retire, and the fund company does the rest.
The idea is that the company invests your nest-egg more conservatively every year, so that when you’re ready to retire, your money will be there for you.
So how well do you think that strategy worked last year, for investors who pinned their hopes on retiring next year? Read more
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