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Educational Foundation Launches Web Site to Help Consumers Make Smart Insurance Decisions Web Site to Help Consumers Make Smart Insurance Decisions
Site Seeks to Help Americans Achieve Financial Security Through Proper Insurance and Financial Planning

WASHINGTON, Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- How much life insurance do I need? What does long-term care cost in my area? Should I buy disability insurance? Which type of health plan makes the most sense for my family? These are all critically important questions to consider, and now there's an educational Web site that can help provide the answers: www.life-line.org.

Created by the Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (LIFE), a nonprofit organization, life-line.org offers a wealth of information about life, health, disability and long-term care insurance and how these products fit into a financial plan. To underscore the importance of planning ahead, the site features more than a dozen of LIFE's realLIFEstories videos -- true accounts of everyday people who benefited from insurance during a crisis, like the death of a loved one or an illness that prevented a breadwinner from working. The site also contains numerous interactive guides and calculators to help consumers understand how much and what kind of insurance they might need.

"If someone depends on you financially -- a spouse, child or parent -- you need to have a plan for how they would be provided for if something were to happen to you," said LIFE president David F. Woods, CLU, ChFC. "LIFE created this Web site to help you think through the possibilities, estimate what you need, and gain the knowledge necessary to make smart decisions about protecting your loved ones' financial futures."

According to LIFE's research, one of the main reasons people say they don't have the insurance coverage they know they need is "lack of knowledge." The LIFE Web site, recently relaunched, offers content that is purely educational and comes from a noncommercial source, empowering consumers to make what could be some of their most important financial decisions. Some key features and content include:
* Term vs. Permanent Life Insurance Decision Guide. This interactive
feature helps consumers answer one of the most crucial questions about
life insurance: "Which type is right for me?"

* Life Insurance and Disability Insurance Needs Calculators. By taking
just a minute to submit some personal financial information, consumers
can gain a general sense of their life and disability insurance needs.

* realLIFEstories Streaming Videos. These dramatic videos recount true
stories that illustrate how insurance helped save the day for a family
or business during a time of great financial need.

* Agent Locator. All it takes is a ZIP code to locate a qualified
insurance professional from a database of nearly 70,000 members of the
National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA), the
nation's largest financial services membership association.

* Long-term Care Insurance Section. With the population continuing to
age, long-term care insurance has become one of the most talked about
types of coverage. This section offers detailed information about who
needs long-term care insurance and how to pick a policy that will meet
your needs and budget.

* Small Business Section. This section discusses how smart insurance
and benefits planning can help small business owners protect
themselves, their families, their business, and their employees.



During September and October, LIFE is running a special quiz-sweepstakes promotion to encourage consumers to take stock of their life insurance needs. This online promotion, co-sponsored by Parents and Child magazines, offers consumers who take a brief life insurance quiz the chance to win a home computer, DVD player, or one of more than 50 other prizes.

The comprehensive and unbiased content found on LIFE's Web site makes it the leading resource for consumers considering a life, health, disability or long-term care insurance purchase. The site currently ranks #1 on Yahoo and #9 on Google for the search term "life insurance."

About LIFE

The Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (LIFE) was founded in 1994 in response to the public's growing need for information and education on life, health, disability and long-term care insurance. LIFE also seeks to remind people of the important role insurance agents and other financial advisors perform in helping families, businesses and individuals find the insurance products that best fit their needs. To learn more about these topics, please visit www.life-line.org.

For further information, please contact Jason Adler, +1-212-445-8246, for Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education.

Source: Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education
 

 
Mortgage demand jumps as rates slump
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New applications for U.S. home loans rose last week along with mortgage refinancings as 30-year mortgage rates eased to their lowest levels in six months, an industry group said Wednesday.

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Average Mortgage Rates As of Sept. 29
NORTH PALM BEACH, Fla. -

Average mortgage rates for single-family homes in the 10 largest metropolitan areas as of Sept. 29 as compiled by bankrate.com. The rates are for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages for 80 percent of the value of the house. A point is a one-time fee equaling one percent of mortgage.

Sep. 29 Prev. Wk

percent+points

Boston 5.84 + 0.00 5.83 + 0.00

Chicago 5.84 + 0.06 5.78 + 0.01

Dallas 5.76 + 0.51 5.68 + 0.56

Detroit 5.69 + 0.25 5.63 + 0.38

Houston 5.71 + 0.80 5.66 + 0.68

Los Angeles 5.77 + 0.60 5.72 + 0.59

New York 5.75 + 0.06 5.73 + 0.10

Philadelphia 5.76 + 0.29 5.71 + 0.31

San Francisco 5.78 + 0.37 5.75 + 0.40

DC Metro 5.62 + 0.66 5.61 + 0.61

National Avg 5.75 + 0.36 5.71 + 0.36

___

NORTH PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — bankrate.com's national average for a variable rate new 1-year adjustable mortgage, based on a 30-year loan for 80 percent of the value of a single-family house.

Sep. 29 Prev. Wk

percent+points

Average 4.21 +0.24 4.21 +0.27  

 
FINANCIAL RESOURCES: How to Cut Your Insurance Costs
Add up what you pay in insurance premiums each year: medical, auto, homeowner’s, life, and so on. Makes you wince, doesn’t it? Here are some ideas from members of the Financial Planning Association about how to reduce your insurance costs.

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