Agent Owner, Gilmore Insurance Services, Marysville, Washington State
Who should be the owner of a life insurance policy? It's going to depend on the situation and the need. Most people could and should be the owners of their own policies. There are sitautions where the spouse should own the policy. One thing to remember is the "owner" makes all the policy decisions on the policy. The insured is just the insured.
The other situation where ownership is important is when estate taxes are the issue, then an insurance trust may be the best solution.
The owner of the life insurance policy makes decisions about the policy, such as who should be the beneficiary, how payments are made, and whether or not the policy is to be continued. So if you want ultimate control over your own policy, you should own the policy yourself. If you have a very large estate and your life insurance proceeds would put it over the exemption for federal estate taxes, you cannot have any incidences of ownership in your policy for at least three years before death.
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The other situation where ownership is important is when estate taxes are the issue, then an insurance trust may be the best solution.