Posts by Marc Schwartz and Paul Falletta

Picture this: you're sitting down with a client who knows they have a need for financial planning that includes life insurance, but is unsure about their next steps. Rather than leading with an overview of suitable products, you share an insight you picked up from reading an article or commentary — something that connects directly to their situation. Suddenly, the conversation shifts. You're not just presenting product options; you're helping them see solutions, easing their concerns, and showing them a path toward a more secure future. That's exactly why we write these blogs. They're des...

  Estate planning often conjures images of complex legal documents and difficult family conversations—but one of the most overlooked aspects is the tax landscape that awaits heirs after death. While much attention is paid to the federal estate tax, the reality is that far more individuals are likely to encounter estate or inheritance taxes at the state level. In fact, the federal estate tax applies only to estates exceeding $15 million effective January 1, 2026, affecting a tiny fraction of the population — less than 0.1% of all estates nationwide. By contrast, several states impose their...

A few years ago, we began one of our most popular blogs by writing, "If we had a nickel for every time a carrier suggested we spend more time showing life insurance as a supplemental retirement income strategy, we would have a ton of nickels.  After all, Windsor was created almost 50 years ago by Jerry Schwartz and Hal Brooks when Universal Life and Interest Sensitive Whole Life were first invented.  From that time on, we've been steadily promoting the unique advantages of life insurance.  But we have a stake in the game." The "view from outside the industry" that...

Executive compensation and benefits have long been pivotal in attracting and retaining top-tier talent within organizations.  As companies vie for the best leaders, they often employ a variety of incentives to make what they offer more appealing. Among these incentives, life insurance has long been viewed as a significant component, offering tax benefits, flexibility and providing executives with a sense of security for their future and that of their families.  For over 40 years, Windsor Insurance Associates has actively supported agents in the marketing and sale of life insurance po...

  Our Summer of '24 Blog features a variety of sales ideas, client materials, underwriting advice, and product insights to help you finish the year strong.  You'll find some of these ideas useful every day, and some of them worth keeping in your pocket for when you come across clients who have unique and specific needs.  We selected these six topics as most likely to set you apart from the competition, and to give you an edge as 2024 comes to a close. Private Split Dollar If your client's estate could benefit from a trust funded with life insurance, but they want to fund the pol...

Life insurance rarely figures prominently in U.S. Supreme Court cases. But there are scattered exceptions, and on June 6 2024, the Court released its decision in Connelly v. United States, originally a Tax Court case involving life insurance in an entity stock redemption arrangement between two brothers who owned a closely held corporation. The Court ruled in favor of the IRS and held that in this case, for purposes of establishing the value of the corporation for estate taxes, the corporation's obligation to purchase the deceased brother's shares did not offset the value of corporate owned li...

"The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values and agenda of an entire generation . . . ." - Steve Jobs Gordon Richardson has life insurance in his blood.  He is a second-generation life insurance producer, learning from his father who has been a Windsor friend for decades.  For Gordon, life insurance has always been a key part of what he offers to clients and is integral to his business.  As "Life Insurance Awareness Month 2022" winds down, we asked Gordon to share a story about how practicing his profession provided security ...

You've met with your clients and their financial advisors on a few occasions and discussed the clients' financial planning and insurance objectives. Things are going well.  The insurance plan and product you are proposing meet the clients' needs exceptionally well, and provide the financial stability they are seeking.  But then you hear it.  The clients want to think about it some more.  When queried, your clients indicate that maybe they will look at this again, but are not sure when that will be. We have all heard it many times before, and know that procrastination and th...

  If we had a nickel for every time a carrier suggested we spend more time showing life insurance as a supplemental retirement income strategy, we would have a ton of nickels.  After all, Windsor was started by Jerry Schwartz and Hal Brooks when Universal Life and Interest Sensitive Whole Life were first invented.  From that time on, we've been steadily promoting the unique advantages of life insurance, most recently in our June 2021 Blog on Life Insurance Retirement Plans (LIRP). But we have a stake in the game.  So when life insurance companies encourage us to emphasize t...

We're guessing that Roth IRAs probably don't show up on your radar these days.  What with the S&P, NASDAQ and the Dow ringing the bell on new records almost weekly, investment advisors focused on wealth creation might just pass right by a qualified plan option with income ceilings of about $200,000 and contribution limits of $6,000 to $7,000 (depending on age) annually, as of 2021. But Peter Thiel of PayPal fame might change your mind.  He simply used a Roth IRA to create a $5 billion tax-exempt fortune. Roth IRAs were created in 1997 to provide for a need not filled by other qua...

For life insurance industry veterans, using cash value life insurance to supplement retirement savings is as old as the rate book.  Overfunding premiums and enjoying the advantages of both insurance protection and tax-free accumulation (without the burden of qualified plan rules) is what makes our products unique.  And with the potential for tax-free income down the road, we really have an unmatched solution for clients wanting to enhance their retirement in a very tax-efficient way. If life insurance is new to you, or if you just need a refresher on the LIfe Insurance Retirement Pla...

  Much has been written about the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and IRC section 7702, (§7702) where, effective January 1, 2021, minimum interest rates associated with the Cash Value Accumulation Test (CVAT) and the Guideline Premium Test (GPT) under the definition of life insurance have been lowered.  These adjustments created welcome changes for:  1) owners of insurance to put more money into cash accumulation plans of coverage without running afoul of definition of life insurance and Modified Endowment Contract (MEC) limits, and  2) carriers to get relief from o...

Here are some of Windsor's best conversation starters, marketing strategies and sales ideas that you can use right now and well into 2021! As advisors to our clients, we can start a conversation with 60-page product illustrations or we can focus on something simpler and closer to home:  Caring for our families by leveraging low interest rates, securing fully guaranteed life insurance benefits, supplementing retirement income, protecting valuable assets, saving money on taxes, and finding easier ways for clients to get the insurance they want and need.  Even in these difficult times, ...

Windsor, Life Happens and AIG Get Together for a Webinar You Don't Want to Miss!  On Demand Now!In today's social-distancing reality, staying connected and maintaining your trusted relationship with clients and centers of influence is more important than ever. But where can you find relevant content that is easy to use?  Windsor invites you to learn about the resources, marketing tools and competitive advantages offered by Life Happens and AIG that are literally at your fingertips, along with social media best practices that you can implement today!  

  Driven by new CSO tables and Principle Based Reserving (PBR), year-end 2019 ushered in a host of life insurance product changes. These changes impacted both a substantial number and a broad diversity of life insurance products and pricing — especially death benefit-oriented "permanent" plans of coverage, a market where many of us spend considerable time promoting and selling.  To assess what happened, we completed a survey of this market based upon the carriers Windsor represents.  While many of our observations were similar for single and joint life products, there were notab...

No matter where you live, no matter where you do business, if you actively participate in the recommendation or sale of a life insurance or annuity product to a client in New York, Rule 187 directly applies to you.  And if it doesn't apply to you today, probably all you have to do is wait. Because, when it comes to insurance regulation, what happens in New York never stays in New York.  Although Rule 187, the new Suitability and Best Interests in Life Insurance and Annuity Transactions rule, exclusively applies to insurance and annuity sales in New York, we have seen regulations like...

In November of 1960 the season was more than half over when the 6-1 Philadelphia Eagles met the 5-1-1 New York Giants with first place on the line in the NFL's Eastern Division. The Giants jumped out to a 10-0 first half lead, but the Eagles fought back to take a 17-10 advantage late in the fourth quarter. The Giants were driving toward a tying score when Frank Gifford, their All-Pro halfback, ran a quick slant pattern across the middle. He caught the ball, but was knocked off his feet by Chuck Bednarik, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound outside linebacker, coming from the opposite direction. The 6-foot-1...

We're pleased to have Colin Devine, of C. Devine and Associates, join us today for a very timely and important Windsor blog about a topic that could have a significant impact upon the type and price of the products you'll be selling in the not too distant future. Colin, in August, 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued Accounting Update 2018-12 (ASU 2018-12), an update that affects all insurance entities that issue long-duration contracts – including life insurance and annuities. Earlier this year, C. Devine and Associates published an exhaustive industry peer review on the impl...

The popularity of Index Universal Life products has stirred up the creative talents of many professional financial advisors, and nowhere has that creativity been more apparent than in the area of policy loan rescues.  No question this is a significant opportunity to bring value to clients and generate a new sale, but it requires a high degree of expertise to navigate successfully.  This article will review rescue strategies so that you have a better idea of what works and what doesn't.  In addition, the Windsor case design team is fully conversant on the options and approaches t...

  New Section 199A Makes Pass-Through Deductions Available for Small Business Owners and Life Insurance Professionals The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently issued its final regulations describing the rules pertaining to section 199A. For those who are unfamiliar with 199A, the section provides for a new deduction of up to 20 percent of qualified domestic business income for pass through entities such as sole-proprietorships, partnerships, S-corporations, trusts, and estates. AALU provided this summary in its January 30, 2019 WR Newswire: "By way of background refresher on section 19...