Managing Life Insurance Policies

Abstract

<p>With the increase in valuation in recent years of many farm and ranch estates, one would reasonably expect that life insurance policies would receive at least as much planning attention as in prior years but that appears not to have been the case.1 In one instance, recently, an estate planner advised an 87-year old client to “get rid of” a $50,000 policy with an income tax basis of just over $11,000, setting the stage for gain of $44,000 on redemption of the policy. Even though investments in farm and ranch land have elevated many farm and ranch estates to record levels well beyond the wildest expectations of the families involved, management of life insurance policies remains an important part of the overall estate planning process.</p>