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What is Premium Financing?

Similar to using mortgage loans to invest in real estate, premium financing uses leverage to finance large life insurance premiums. Find out how it works.

READ THE BOOK

The Book on Premium Financing

This book is the new updated 2024 Version, and addresses everything you need to know about premium financing, including:

  • When is premium financed life insurance appropriate for a client?

  • How do high interest rate environments affect net outcomes?

  • What types of collateral are accepted by premium financing lenders?

  • Is there more than one loan model to finance premiums?

  • Does premium financing mean the insurance is free?

  • What premium financing gimmicks should clients avoid?

INDEXED UNIVERSAL LIFE INSURANCE

Everything you need to know about IUL's

This book addresses the good, the bad, the ugly, and the raw truth about how IULs actually work. It transparently answers the most important questions:

  • How is the 0% floor is created?

  • How is the cap created?

  • How do policy charges affect net returns?

  • Which index option is the best?

  • Are IULs appropriate for estate tax planning?

  • Should IULs be used for retirement planning?

DIVE DEEPER

Featured Videos

What Makes Lionsmark Unique?

Discover the three specific things Lionsmark does to protect clients.

The Cost of Liquidity

(Estate Tax)

Discover how to prevent your adult children from fighting over their inheritance.

Retirement Planning

Find out if premium financed life insurance can generate a tax-free retirement income.

Watch More

Backtesting

How our proprietary backtesting software analyzes 121 different historical periods of index performance.

Family Governance & Premium Financed Life Insurance

How to prevent your adult children from fighting over their inheritance.

What is Premium Financing?

How premium financing is similar to investing in real estate using a mortgage loan.

ASKED & ANSWERED

Lionsmark Capital FAQ's

What are the minimum requirements for premium financing?

Minimum Net Worth:

Penn Mutual: $15MM

Pacific Life: $10MM

Nationwide: $10MM

Transamerica: $5MM

Securian: $5MM

National Life Group (LSW): $2.5MM (up to age 49), $5MM (ages 50+)

Lincoln: $2.5MM (ages 30-50), $5MM (ages 51+)

Allianz: $1MM, or $500K NW (with $200K income), or $0 NW (with $400K income)

Minimum Policy Size:

$100K borrowed annual premium (or $1MM total loan amount)

How does our proprietary backtesting software work?

Our proprietary software creates a proxy for the premium financed IUL. We call it a "Leveraged Hypothetical Synthetic Asset." It is essentially a fictitious asset that behaves similar to an IUL in the sense that:

-Its growth is correlated with the S&P 500

-Its returns are restricted by a floor and a cap

-Charges are removed before the EOY index credit

We then analyze 121 different historical 40-year windows of S&P 500 performance and run the proxy's model through the 40-year period that produced the BEST Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) and the 40-year period that produced the WORST CAGR. The intent of this backtested analysis is to give the client a better understanding of a range of potential outcomes using an instrument that behaves similar to an IUL.

How are borrowing interest rates determined?

We work with 19 different lenders using multiple lending platforms. Different lenders will use a different index as the base rate (e.g., SOFR, CMT, Treasury rate, etc.), then add a spread on top of the base rate (typically between 1.00%-2.95%).  Other lenders use the Prime rate as the base rate, minus a spread (typically between 0.00%-1.50). 

We also have some lenders that offer multi-year fixed rates. 

There are typically price breaks at $500K in Annual Premium Borrowed (APB), as well at $1MM in APB. If we design a case wherein the requested death benefit solves for an annual premium close to a price break, often times it will make sense to increase the annual premium so that your client receives a more favorable borrowing rate (due to hitting the price break), and paying off the loan earlier using the policy values. Often times, this adjustment can result in a lower total out-of-pocket interest expense for the client, yield a higher initial face amount, and produce a higher low point net death benefit.

Based on the multiple lenders Lionsmark Capital works with, borrowing rates depend on a number of variables including:

1. Client Net Worth

2. Client Liquidity

3. Whether or not the client is willing to move collateral (or just post it from their current institution)

4. Type of Collateral (e.g., Cash, Marketable Securities, Letter Of Credit, Real Estate, etc.)

5. Amount of Premium Borrowed

6. Paying Interest vs. Paying Partial Premium and Accruing Interest on Additional Borrowed Premium

7. State of Client’s Primary Residence

8. Ownership of Policy (e.g., Trust, Shell LLC, Operating Business, Individual Person, etc.)

9. Length of Loan Term (e.g., 1-Year, 5-Years, 10-Years, 20-Years, etc.)

While other premium financing intermediaries just offer generic loan terms from one lender, Lionsmark Capital evaluates the client’s unique situation and preferences, and finds the lender with:1. The lowest rate2. Most fitting loan terms, specific to the client’s preferencesEach case is different, and we will design the most mathematically prudent premium financing design for your client on a case-by-case basis.

What types of collateral will lenders accept?

We have a variety of lenders on our platform that accept different forms of collateral. 

Most lenders will accept:

-Cash (typically credited an advanced rate of 100%)

-CDs (typically credited an advanced rate of 100%)

-Bonds (typically credited an advanced rate of 90%)

-Marketable Securities (typically credited an advanced rate of 50%-75%, depending on the portfolio)

-Cash Value of existing life insurance policies (typically credited an advanced rate of 95%)

-Real Estate Equity 

Lenders will NOT accept:

-Business valuation

-401(k) or IRA

-Cryptocurrency

-Assets held overseas

LEARN ABOUT DARREN

Who is Darren Sugiyama?

Darren Sugiyama – Founder & CEO of Lionsmark Capital – is a 13-time author whose books are currently being distributed in Australia, Brasil, Canada, Croatia, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, India, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States Of America. His books include Premium Financed Life Insurance – The Key To Effective Estate Tax Planning and IUL For Aspiring Know-It-Alls.

Darren consults with investment advisory firms, family offices, estate tax attorneys, CPAs, and life insurance agents, designing custom premium financed life insurance arrangements for their high net worth clients.

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