Serious Help

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jambo101, thank you for the perspective. This my first go at a site like this, and I know in my heart and mind I can be of some help to everyone I speak too, just as I learn from those who speak to me. The "baptism by fire" comment was very accurate, and I too understand money and people are sensitive and serious. I look forward to future lamb-bastings!! I am confident in my work, but make no mistakes, there a lot of bad planners out there and I understand, advise is not always taken favorably.
 
Paul:

Thanks for trying to help out. We can always use valid wisdom in optimizing our financial picture. That's why most of us are here.

You stated in your OP however:

1 - "Every person (and their financial viewpoint) is different. Not earth shattering news, I'm sure, but basic beginning point! If there was one product, or one way, it would be easy to be a planner. There is no one single solution, nor is there one book, or concept that can fit perfectly into all plans."

2 - You then blanket answered that Whole Life was an optimal investment "based on the information provided".

It seems the you started out here with philosophies that contradict each other.

Don't be too surprised at the negative reactions....Right or wrong, credibility continues to be something your profession struggles with.
 
PaulK....

Most on this board are not your normal distribution of people in general... some here have done very well and can probably plan better than you...

You read a few who had a life insurance policy that did bad and then talk about how 'bad' they are, but more than likely it was a 'financial planner' who got them into it... I know that is what happened to me 30 years ago.... but I got wise in 2 years and got out..

Show some real life examples... so far all I read from you is a sales pitch... and my dad was a great salesman so I know one when I hear one...

But..... it will be wasted on me.... and probably others as no matter what you can come up with, the cost and fees 'more than likely' is HIGH. .... if I am wrong, tell me what it is?

And what is the 1, 5, and 10 year return on some of your clients... or do you have any that have been in it 10 years?
 
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paulk63 said:
If you are not in the business of Financial Planner, then you are exaclty like a wine expert,... you just have an opinion.
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Spelling, grammar and punctuation errors aside, you are saying that no one but a FP is an "expert" in financial planning? If so, that is a very bold and challenging statement to put forth on a personal finance forum filled with very successful DIY types.

I predict you, like 90+% of the other FPs and insurance salesmen who have shown up here with an air of superiority to [-]sell your services[/-] "help", will have a short and bumpy experience. The few FPs who have hung around had two characteristics: they tried to understand the culture of the board before wading in to "help" and they had a sense of humor. At this point I'd say you were short in both areas.
 
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paulk63 said:
jambo101, thank you for the perspective. This my first go at a site like this, and I know in my heart and mind I can be of some help to everyone I speak too, just as I learn from those who speak to me. The "baptism by fire" comment was very accurate, and I too understand money and people are sensitive and serious. I look forward to future lamb-bastings!! I am confident in my work, but make no mistakes, there a lot of bad planners out there and I understand, advise is not always taken favorably.
Click to expand...

I am not inclined to take 'advice' from someone who can't even spell it.
 
REWahoo, my spelling, grammer and punctuation, do fall short and it is something I work on. I would say the shortest thing on this thread is you! :)
 
paulk63 said:
REWahoo, my spelling, grammer and punctuation, do fall short and it is something I work on. I would say the shortest thing on this thread is you! :)
Click to expand...

The correct spelling is grammar, but as long as you are working on it....

And as to my "shortness", I'll have you know I can dance with the same girls as you. I may not be able to look around much when I do, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. ;)
 
IJUBA, I understand your view of my answer (which is not popular at all), and I have no issues with disagreement, as there is no on right answer for all questions. However, there are corect answers for questions with limited information avaiable at the time of the occurance. As I mentined before, Life Insurance is not the backbone of my practice, it has certain and possibly limited applications, and it should not be discounted as a solution, and certainly should be examined as ONE option to consider when examining complete financial planning.
 
I will never spell grammer with an "e" again, thanks for the help, and a big thanks for that "dancing" mental picture!! That came through loud and clear! LOL
 
Sounds to me like either completely articulate a situation to which whole life insurance is the financial answer - with historical data - or admit it is not an astute investment.
 
Texas Proud, in a previous message I mentioned this is my first go at any time of online discussion. I am not a "Salesguy", I know this as I used to be one a long time ago in the Data Communications world. I got in to this business, as a number of years ago, I lost EVERYTHING I had worked for. It was my fault, I promised my self to learn the business, and then try to listen and help, yes HELP others. I am not above it all, I do not feel superior to anyone. I am confident in my knowledge and my abilities. It will take time for evreyone here to understand me, some will never, that is OK! One can only be guided their lifes past experiences to navigate the future.
 
Thank you for the kind offer of FP services, but I already have a FP. Me.

I get a 100% COLA'd check every month. I have medical, dental, prescription, vision coverage for 30% of the group premium, for life, this becomes secondary to Medicare at 65.

We have zero debt and some bones in the bank/investments. It's not enough to buy a private intercontinental jet, but I think we'll manage.

What, me worry?
 
paulk63 said:
I am not a "Salesguy", I know this as I used to be one a long time ago in the Data Communications world.
Click to expand...

For your own benefit you should probably get off here and start dialing for leads. People here won't even buy new clothes; do you think there is any chance we might buy something from you? Even if you are the smartest financial product salesman in the world. There are way greener pastures. :)

Ha
 
retire48in2008, Whole Life is includable in a complete financial plan. Breifly, as a begining to your question, here are 16 reason which WL provides, and NO other vehilce completely provides; (some are obvious) Premature Death Benefit, Disabilty Payout, Protection from Creditors, Increasing Death Benefit, Builds Net Worth, Generates a Conservative Rate of Return, Minimal Risk, Liquidity, Tax Advantage accumulation, Alternate Credit Source, Tax Advantage Withdrawals, Income Tax Free at Death, Form of Saving, Systematic, Flexible Funding Options, Flexible Distribution Options. Make NO mistake, I am not stating to use WL as your only planning tool. It is used to provide peace of mind, while contributing to your entire portfolio on a limited percentage of your entire portfolio, while avoiding an irrevocable transfer of wealth, which Term insurance clearly can not accomplish.
 
Walt34, your life sounds great, truly sounds like you are happy. That is the ultimate goal.

Haha, I am not looking for leads or to sell anything. Hard to believe, I know, I am truly learing alot here. I was short sighted thinking the only advantage to this was to help someone. I will continue to learn from everyone here! Oh, almost forgot, I work on refferal basis only, cold calling sucks! :)
 
Financial minority!

paulk63 said:
Do you have a PERSONAL BALANCE SHEET? I would say maybe ONE percent of individuals have a Personal Balance SHeet
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Welcome to the "One percent" segment of our society! This crowd knows pretty much where each PENNY "in" goes, and what their balance sheet reads, and how to make the black numbers grow! :cool:
 
Paul, you might be interested to know that the Firefox browser has an automatic spell check feature.
 
paulk63 said:
retire48in2008, Whole Life is includable in a complete financial plan. Breifly, as a begining to your question, here are 16 reason which WL provides, and NO other vehilce completely provides; (some are obvious) Premature Death Benefit, Disabilty Payout, Protection from Creditors, Increasing Death Benefit, Builds Net Worth, Generates a Conservative Rate of Return, Minimal Risk, Liquidity, Tax Advantage accumulation, Alternate Credit Source, Tax Advantage Withdrawals, Income Tax Free at Death, Form of Saving, Systematic, Flexible Funding Options, Flexible Distribution Options. Make NO mistake, I am not stating to use WL as your only planning tool. It is used to provide peace of mind, while contributing to your entire portfolio on a limited percentage of your entire portfolio, while avoiding an irrevocable transfer of wealth, which Term insurance clearly can not accomplish.
Click to expand...

Let's see here. Can I do that thing?

Premature Death Benefit - Somebody Else's Problem
Disabilty Payout - Compensation for inability to earn wages; I already earn no wages...
Protection from Creditors - What creditors? >:D
Increasing Death Benefit - Somebody Else's Problem
Builds Net Worth - I can already do that; with lower expenses and a higher return rate.
Generates a Conservative Rate of Return - I can already do that; with lower expenses and a higher return rate.
Minimal Risk - I can already do that; Diversified portfolio across a broad range of investments with low correlation. (E-Z fix, Wellington/Wellesley...)
Liquidity - Yup, not a problem.
Tax Advantage accumulation - Yup.
Alternate Credit Source - Yup
Tax Advantage Withdrawals - Yup; Long term capital gains rate for taxable/Roth IRA
Income Tax Free at Death - Somebody Else's Problem, but proper estate planning addresses this. Taxable accounts get that nice basis step-up. Roth IRAs have additional nice behaviors.
Form of Saving - *Snort* So is a passbook savings account, with lower fees and better real world returns. :rolleyes:
Systematic - As am I...
Flexible Funding Options - Check...
Flexible Distribution Options - Oh, yeah...

It's good to be a Boglehead... I believe I'm covered pretty well here.

Peace of mind? Check.
Avoid irrevocable transfer of wealth? Check (until death anyway. That'll give ya an irrevocable transfer of wealth...)

In general there are only three kinds of insurance I can see for a Financially Independant Retired Early person:

Medical - Individual medical insurance is pretty much a necessity, unless the FIREd person is lucky enough to be under some sort of lifetime plan courtesy of their last employer. Either way, they need coverage until Medicare eligible, and will probably want a supplement then.

Long Term Care - The FIREd person should consider this one carefully. Unless their financial independence is so solid that they can self-insure, that is, cough up years of long term care cash without endangering retirement funding for themselves or others.

Term Insurance - MIGHT be a good idea if a significant slice of retirement income is coming from a pension or similar cash stream that ends at death with a poor to no survivor benefit. Figure enough to open a single payment fixed annuity to replace the lost income. (See, you could sell an annuity! Not a very profitable one, but it's an annuity!)
 
paulk63 said:
I am not above it all, I do not feel superior to anyone.
Click to expand...

Maybe your problem is that on your first post you clearly stated that you were superior to everyone on this board. Read again your original post and the title of this thread... When I first read the title, I thought YOU were the one needing the help. As it turned out, it was me who supposedly needed the help and I didn't even know it! You basically insulted everyone implying we were just a bunch of amateurs who did not know what we were doing. When you say that to a group of people who have done so well for themselves as to be able to retire early, it's bound to raise a few eyebrows and to receive a pretty stark response. It is no easy crowd, believe me. But, you seem to mellow out with each new post, so I'll give you a second chance (but not my money). Please don't blow it by suggesting everyone should put their money in annuities...
 
paulk63 said:
I have reviewed many of the postings, and there seems to be one common thread. EVERYONE needs Serious Help!! I mean this in a postive manner. I am a Financial Planner and I would be happy to answer any questions, however, my first statement is,... go talk to a local financial planner. Talk with a few of them! Every person (and their financial viewpoint) is different. Not earth shattering news, I'm sure, but basic beginning point! If there was one product, or one way, it would be easy to be a planner. There is no one single solution, nor is there one book, or concept that can fit perfectly into all plans.
Click to expand...

First, I'd like to welcome to this board. I'm pretty new here myself and I haven't introduced myself with a separate thread yet, but one day I'll do when I have something to say about our finances in articulate manner :cool:.

Second, I see that you got off a bad foot on this board and even as a newbie I think I know where the problem is:
1) I think you confused this forum with some other forum, e.g. creditcarddebt.com, debt.com, etc, etc.
2) Why do I think I am right about my above statement? Because in the OP you said you reviewed many postings and EVERYONE needs Serious Help!! Really, EVERYONE? Are all members in such dire situation financially? That's a VERY BOLD statement from your side, IMO. I doubt you read plenty of threads if any because if you did you'd have noticed that people share their experiences and try to help each other and quite a few of them either comfortably FIRE'd or getting close. I'm very sure they wouldn't have FIRE'd so early if they needed SERIOUS help.
3) Business of Personal Finance Planners is unregulated (I believe, it's unregulated, right?) and we hear so many stories every day, how one or another felt cheated by a FP. My DH and I also met two planners and I lost confidence in them as well just because they advised us to use very expensive funds. However, I did appreciate their honesty. When asked why won't they advise to invest with Vanguard or T.RowePrice, the answer was "then I won't get paid." I realized that we deal with commission based planners. Maybe (ONLY maybe) we'll venture to meet a fee-based FP 10-15 years later. Anyway, because FP's are regarded with suspicion, you should have presented yourself in a more humble manner, particularty on this board.;)

Let me continue a bit more, OK?
You just came and proclaimed that everyone needs help, you're a FP and you can help.
Sorry, based on such introduction nobody can believe you and think that you're a cocky guy (gal??).
I'd be more interested in learning more about your credibility as the FP:

- How old are you? What's your experience in FP business?
- How many LT clients do you have?
- How specifically have your helped them? (what was their financial state when they met you and what's their current state?)
- What's your net worth (excluding home equity)? Someone asked this question but you couldn't put in numbers :confused:. You said "Substantial" and then you preached that people have no clue about a Personal Bal.Sheet. Well, tell me where do you put "SUBSTANTIAL" on the Bal.Sh. so that numbers balance? Hence, we need NUMBERS!!!

So, good luck on this forum because personally I think quite a few members could educate YOU about Personal Finance ;), not vice versa.
 
paulk63 said:
All very good points about the Life insurance. I was merely answer a question based on the the information in the question. Although, I would venture to say, the individuals who realized such a small return were not in DIVIDEND PAYING, WHOLE LIFE Insurance form a Mutual Company (not a Stock Company). I provide my clients with documentation
Click to expand...

You have GOT to be kidding..........what Kool-Aid did you drink?? :p

Plus, you need to learn how to spell,or NOONE on here will think of you as a CFP or anything else..........;)
 
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