Hi everybody, looking for a good time here!

[excellent]

Ok some personal info I guess would be in order... hm... where to start. I just turned 19, I am a second year Undeclared at UCLA, pretty much my only hobbies are hanging out with friends and grabbing a bite to eat or playing DOTA (Defense of the Ancients, an online team-based game). I recently joined the company World Financial Group and and going to take my California Life Agent License test in early November. I am really looking forward to actually helping families and friends with their finances and not just pushing unnecessary or unwise products or financial plans on them, and that is probably the main reason why I wanted to become a part of this community. Basically the reason why I joined both WFG and this community is so that I can learn and grow in my financial knowledge and be able to really help others through that newfound knowledge. Anyways yeah... I really like helping people... and I guess that's pretty much it.

PS.
Have any of you heard about WFG, the EIUL (Equity Index Universal Life), the company WRL (Western Reserve Life), or anything? I want to know if they're good before I go further with the company before it's too late... or the EIUL turns out to be a bad product... or WRL turns out to be a bad company... so far I've only heard good things but if anyone finds anything hard I'll definitely have that in the back of my mind when sharing financial knowledge with the people I want to help. Thank you so very much everyone!

PPS.
My name is Alexander, and I'm very happy to meet you all!

 

[REWahoo]

Welcome to the forum Alexander.

I recently joined the company World Financial Group and and going to take my California Life Agent License test in early November. I am really looking forward to actually helping families and friends with their finances and not just pushing unnecessary or unwise products or financial plans on them...

Unfortunately the goals of WFG and your desire to help families and friends will almost certainly be in serious conflict with each other. I suspect you will be pressured to convince anyone and everyone you come into contact with of their need to buy expensive variations of life insurance products when the vast majority of them would be better off with simple term insurance. WFG will do everything in their power to convince you otherwise (including pay you lucrative commissions), but the truth is you will be helping only WFG and yourself in almost every case.

Have any of you heard about WFG, the EIUL (Equity Index Universal Life), the company WRL (Western Reserve Life), or anything? I want to know if they're good before I go further with the company before it's too late... or the EIUL turns out to be a bad product!

I don't know anything about WFG, but I'm painfully familiar with the industry. I'm almost certain the products you mention are not cost-efficient insurance nor do they represent good investments for the friends and families you want to help.

Run, don't walk, away from this company.

 

[MooreBonds]

Unfortunately the goals of WFG and your desire to help families and friends will almost certainly be in serious conflict with each other. I suspect you will be pressured to convince anyone and everyone you come into contact with of their need to buy expensive variations of life insurance products when the vast majority of them would be better off with simple term insurance. WFG will do everything in their power to convince you otherwise (including pay you lucrative commissions), but the truth is you will be helping only WFG and yourself in almost every case.

While it's not the exact same thing, I'd like to throw in a second nomination for what REWahoo touched on.

When I started my new career search a few months ago, I toyed with the idea of being an insurance salesman (homeowners, auto) for a company like Allstate, State Farm, etc. Most of them offer brokerage services, and they help you get your Series 7, 63, etc. licenses to sell duped, trusting people on ridiculously high commissioned products offer investment advice (hey, telling someone to buy your fund just because it gives you a ripe 3% comission is still advice...terrible advice for sure, but it's still technically advice, and they don't advertise themselves as being "good financial advisors" )

I asked each one this question: "If I become an insurance salesman, do I HAVE to sell your in-house mutual funds" (which are laden with sky-high annual fees and sometimes have bigass loads).

Their answer, each and every time, was the same: "Yes".

I wouldn't be able to start up my own investment advisory service in a separate company - I would HAVE to sell their - and ONLY their - mutual funds and brokerage services.

I could never look someone straight in the eye and try to tell them to buy my mutual fund just because I get a fat comission off of it, when it would nearly always (99.999999% of the time) be in their best interest to simply go with Wellesley or a Vanguard index fund (thanks to my INTJ personality ). Because of that, I am no longer considering being an insurance salesman (even though I love giving great service to people, and I feel that I would maintain a good client retention rate because of it).

 

[brewer12345]

Alexander, there is nothing wrong with WRL. Solid quality, mutual life company. The problem is the product. Permanent life insurance is unsuited for most people, and equity indexed products are generally a rip-off. You will be forced encouraged to sell a lot of these policies regardless of whether the marks customers actually need them or even understand what they are buying.

Sorry to rain on your parade. But welcome to the forum.

 

[FinanceDude]

World FInancial Group was formed by a few of Primerica's managers that wanted a bigger cut, and to compete directly with Primerica.

The premise is the same: Sell insurance and mutual funds to friends and neighbors, and try to get them to sell for you.

Tread very carefully................

Western Reserve Life is a pretty good mutual company, along with New York Life and to a lesser extent NML.............

 

[jazz4cash]

World FInancial Group was formed by a few of Primerica's managers that wanted a bigger cut, and to compete directly with Primerica.

Dang......Primerica Strikes Again!!

 

[excellent]

"World FInancial Group was formed by a few of Primerica's managers that wanted a bigger cut, and to compete directly with Primerica."
Whoa are you serious... dang... but I mean... I'll look into the different products we offer and tell you guys as I find them. I really want to know how this is gonna be going... because I really want to just go to people's homes and stuff and teach people how to save and have secure financial futures. I don't really care about the commission and stuff as long as I am able to field the best products for the various life situations familes are in, you know? This is kind of disheartening though... I tried really hard to be skeptical and ask questions and most everything seemed legit. It's true that the commissions are pretty good though. (like up to 73% for the first year on most products when you're high up in the company, overrides from associates down the generational line, 3% residual income from plans for the years following the first... etc.)
Is the EIUL good in ANY situations? Like if a family had enough to stash away and already had some other investment vehicles? Or does it cost too much... it's basically WFG's flagship product they are always boasting about right now, which is why I want to know if it's good or not before I start selling it or offering it to people who have trust in my own advice.
Again, thank you all very much... I feel very welcomed here and for that I am grateful!

 

[excellent]

Also one of the things I'm really interesting in knowing is that if there are less emphasized plans and services that WFG offers, but are still good plans, I can still help people that way right? Like if the major flagship products aren't that great or something. (Though they sound good) Anyways yeah any way I can help people is cool.
Beyond just googling and wikipediaing these companies... are there any like... uh... review sites or something of the wholesomeness of some of the following companies?
Western Reserve Life, American Skandia, Pacific Life, Lincoln Benefit Life, Transamerica Retirement Services, Innergy Lending.
Sorry about all of this but I'm new to the concept of helping people with their retirements and emergency fund savings so I hope you understand the position I'm in. (Barely 19, held a few summer or part time jobs, but never had real schooling in how to deal with money and how to save it in this more advanced way like you all seem to have experience with) Thank you!

 

[AltaRed]

I must be really missing something here. You joined a company without knowing its reputation, tactics, or products? Or you are only considering this company??

 

[excellent]

"You joined a company without knowing its reputation, tactics, or products?"
Yup.
I joined to learn, pretty bad I know, but there's not really any other quick way to get into the industry that I foresee other than getting all my licenses first somehow and then learning everything about FA.

 

[yakers]

"You joined a company without knowing its reputation, tactics, or products?"

Hey, some folks have enlisted with about that much information

 

[brewer12345]

Yup.
I joined to learn, pretty bad I know, but there's not really any other quick way to get into the industry that I foresee other than getting all my licenses first somehow and then learning everything about FA.

Ex, that's fine, just be aware of the deal you are striking with the devil and make the most of it. Get your feet wet and get licensed, but don't hang around too long. These guys are the bottom feeders of the industry.