If you have been reading my articles for a while, you know that I am a music fan. I am primarily a fan of the horn bands - Tower of Power, Chicago, Blood, Sweat and Tears - to name a few. I am also a major fan of Latin music and not because I am a great dancer. The Afro-Cuban bands aka Salsa bands typically have great horn sections. But when it comes to the music of our youth, my main connection to American music was AFRTS radio and Casey Kasem American Top 40 every Saturday night. I am a quirky guy with some quirky points of view. One of them is my thesis is that the Bee Gees were better than the Beatles. My thesis goes something like this. The Beatles primarily had the benefit of social timing and marketing. The groups had strong songwriters in John Lennon and Paul McCartney, but as musicians were not spectacular especially in the early days. The Bee Gees could harmonize together like no group before or after. When the chips were down, they reinvented themselves with a completely new sound. When the disco era ended, they wrote number one hits for other performers. Their sound and songs will last as long as Mozart and others. Just saying!
I have been active in the Private Placement Life Insurance (PPLI) industry since 1999. In some respects, the PPLI industry is always in the process of arriving but whose moment never quite arrives. The industry has made progress and has consolidated its position. However, in that process it has ended up looking like its first cousin, the retail variable universal life insurance industry. This fact is not necessarily a bad thing, but part of the allure of PPLI is its creativity and customization for the policyholder.
Summary
Life insurance is the most tax advantaged investment and insurance structure on the Planet. There is no close second! The PPLI mantra goes something like this - Tax-free investment income; tax-free distributions during lifetime and income and estate tax-free death benefit. PPLI is institutionally priced and provides customized investment options. One side of PPLI planning provides for customization of the fund options. Another side of PPLI provides the ability to capture the income and gains of capital assets within the policy on a tax-free basis. There is something for everyone!
Sincerely,
Gerry Nowotny, Esq.
