Jeff Maroz
Home / Info / Interview Series / Jeff Maroz
Interview Series: Jeff Maroz

Jeff Maroz recently sat down with the Holzmann & DeBlis Real Estate Team to discuss life insurance premium financing, and the Wealth Management Group (http://www.wmglife.com).  You can find Mr. Maroz's contact information below.  Additionally, click here if you'd like to read an additional article on Mr. Maroz published in the August 2007 issue of Beverly Hills Times Magazine.


Q:  What is life insurance premium financing?

Jeff Maroz:  Premium financing is a program which allows an insured to use someone else's money (typically a bank or approved lender) to pay all the premiums on his or her life insurance policy so that the insured does not have to pay the premiums himself.  Many senior citizens who own life insurance, particularly those who buy for estate planning purposes, face the unpleasant reality of expensive life insurance premiums for the type and amount of coverage that is commonly needed. 

If a client can qualify, premium financing is a special program that allows clients to obtain the same type of coverage without paying many of the out-of-pocket expenses that these policies usually require.  With premium financing, the premiums are paid by a finance company that uses the policy death benefit as partial collateral for the premiums paid on your behalf.  Upon your death, the finance company is repaid these premiums (along with interest) out of your death benefit, allowing your beneficiaries to receive the remainder of the death benefit tax-free.  It's an incredible solution.


Q:  What are the tax benefits of financing insurance premiums?

Jeff Maroz:  The tax benefits are significant!  By having a finance company pay the premiums on your behalf, the money used to fund the policy premiums is deemed to be out of your estate, thereby avoiding federal estate and gift taxes and allowing you to gift other assets to your heirs tax-free instead (these other assets would have been taxable to your heirs had you used up your tax credits to pay the premiums yourself).  In addition, any death benefit that is eventually received by you heirs from the policy is also tax-free!


Q:  Recently the subject of individuals selling their existing policies to outside investors has gained popularity and is being discussed in nationally recognized magazines.   How does it work?

Jeff Maroz:  Traditionally, a policy was only worth its surrender value if someone didn't want the coverage any longer.  Today, there are investors known as settlement companies that are in business to buy your policy from you for considerably more than the surrender value depending on the age of the insured and the type of policy. 

Most of these settlement companies are major institutional investors.  However, there are also some smaller investors and agents that have misrepresented the legalities surrounding selling your life policy.  Recently, Business Week and the Wall Street Journal touched on some of the issues surrounding this subject.  Essentially, if you have an existing policy that you're thinking about cancelling, you can shop it among these settlement companies and will often find several companies that will pay you a generous portion of your death benefit on the spot, versus cancelling it for oftentimes the much less surrender value.  In exchange, that company becomes the beneficiary to the remainder of your policy death benefit when you eventually die.  They also take over your premiums so that you are not responsible for any future payments related to the policy. It can provide for a great opportunity, but it should only be done in compliance with regulations set by the insurance industry.  My advice, make sure you're working with a reputable agent.


Q:  Who fits the Client Profile for the Wealth Management Group?

Jeff Maroz:  Our clients generally are senior citizens with a minimum net worth of $3 million or greater.  Many of our clients are current or previous business owners who realize that creative planning is a tool that allows you to reap benefits that "the masses" oftentimes overlook.  At Wealth Management Group, we provide all of our clients with a thorough evaluation of their life insurance plan and help offer them options to maximize their results without exposing themselves to unnecessary risks.

You can reach Jeff Maroz at (310) 433-9700 or jmaroz@adelphia.net

The principals of Wealth Management Group (http://www.wmglife.com) have been assisting individuals and corporations with their life insurance needs for over 20 years.  They are a nationally respected authority in life insurance and retirement planning.    Along with their affiliates, they have collectively sold over 1 Billion of life insurance coverage in the senior citizen market alone. To speak to a representative about your life insurance needs, please contact the Wealth Management Group office at (800) 761-9550.