How Do I Determine My Final Expense Whole Life Insurance Cash Value?

What is Cash Value in a Final Expense Whole Life Insurance Policy?

Most people think of the death benefit – the amount paid to the policy’s beneficiaries when the policyholder passes – when they think about life insurance, but the whole life insurance policy cash value is another benefit of these types of policies.

that grows tax-free. The longer you have the policy, the more money accumulates in the account.

When you pay your monthly premium on an insurance policy, the money you pay funds three portions of the policy:

• Part of your premium goes toward the death benefit
• Part of your premium goes toward the cash value
• Part of your premium goes toward the insurance company’s operating expenses

How Do I Determine My Final Expense Whole Life Insurance Cash Value?

Insurance companies that issue whole-life policies manage the assets of your insurance policy with the goal of building your cash value to be equal to the face value of your policy by the time your policy matures. Most whole life insurance policies mature at 121 years, although some mature at 100 years.

Say, for example, that you purchase an insurance policy with a face value of $10,000. Once the policy matures, the cash value of the policy should equal $10,000.

Insurance companies use a whole-life cash value chart that will help you see how the cash value accumulates as the policy ages. The chart below shows the progression of a policy’s cash value for a $10,000 policy that was purchased by a 40-year-old person.

Year	Age	Cash Value
1	41	$0
2	42	$0
3	43	$69
4	44	$176
5	45	$286
6	46	$389
7	47	$517
8	48	$638
9	49	$764
10	50	$894
11	51	$1,027
12	52	$1,164
13	53	$1,305
14	54	$1,450
15	55	$1,597
16	56	$1,749
17	57	$1,906
18	58	$2,066
19	59	$2,232
20	60	$2,402
21	61	$2,576
22	62	$2,754
23	63	$2,935
24	64	$3,119
25	65	$3,306
26	66	$3,497
27	67	$3,690
28	68	$3,888
29	69	$4,088
30	70	$4,290
31	71	$4,495
32	72	$4,701
33	73	$4,908
34	74	$5,114
35	75	$5,320
36	76	$5,526
37	77	$5,730
38	78	$5,934
39	79	$6,136
40	80	$6,336
41	81	$6.534
42	82	$6,728
43	83	$6,917
44	84	$7,102
45	85	$7,279
46	86	$7,448
47	87	$7,608
48	88	$7,757
49	89	$7,894
50	90	$8,018

To find the specifics for your age and policy, you can use one of the many free whole life insurance cash value calculators available online. You can also contact customer service at the insurance company that issued your policy to get specifics about the cash value of your policy.

How Am I Able To Use My Whole Life Insurance Cash Benefit?

If you have an emergency in your life – or you want to access money for something else – you will have the option to access the cash value of your policy in several ways.

Cash Value Policy Loans

Once you’ve built up cash value on your policy, you will have the option of borrowing against it. This could come in handy if you need the money to pay an unexpected expense. There are a few things you should know before taking out a policy loan:

• You will have to pay interest on the loan. Most policy loan interest rates are lower than you will find at a bank or credit union, but you will need to check with your insurer as they all quote different rates.
• If you don’t pay back the loan, the money will be deducted from the death benefit – and that could leave your beneficiaries without a way to pay for your final expenses.
• You will need to watch the interest that accumulates on the loan. If it exceeds the amount of the cash value, it could cause your policy to lapse.

For more information on whole-life policy loans, read Borrowing Against Whole Life.

Surrender a Portion of Your Policy

You also have the option of surrendering a portion of your policy as a way of borrowing against its cash value. Because it takes years to build cash value in a policy, this method is for those who have accumulated sufficient cash value. It works like this:

• Determine the cash value of your policy
• Surrender your policy in exchange for the cash value

There are pros and cons to surrendering a policy in exchange for the cash value.

Pros

• You will have instant access to your money
• You can use the money however you want
• It’s a great way to cash in on a life insurance policy you no longer need

Cons

• You may have to pay a percentage of the cash value in surrender fees
• You may owe taxes on a portion of the cash value
• Your beneficiaries will no longer receive a death benefit
• Some life insurance companies pay the cash value amount in payments instead of one lump sum

How Does Using the Cash Value of My Policy Affect My Final Expense Insurance

When you use the cash value of your life insurance policy, whether it’s to take out a policy loan or to surrender it in exchange for the money, the death benefit can be affected. For instance, when you surrender your policy, it is no longer in effect, so your previously named beneficiaries will no longer receive a death benefit when you pass.

When you take out a loan against the cash value, the death benefit on the policy will be adjusted if you pass without paying back the loan. For instance, if the death benefit on your policy is $10,000 and you took a $3,000 policy loan and only paid back $2,000, the death benefit would be reduced by the $1,000 you still owed on the loan.

Is Whole Life Insurance Right for You?

Purchasing a whole life insurance policy provides a lot of benefits that other types of insurance don’t – including the ability to grow cash value. To learn more about funeral insurance, also called burial insurance or final expense insurance, go to Lincoln Heritage and get a free quote. If you decide that this type of whole life insurance is right for you, you will get a free 30-day look period after your purchase to review the policy. If you decide you no longer want it, all you have to do is cancel it for a full refund.