Benefits
Does the VA Pay Off Your Mortgage if You Die?
4 min read
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Independent life insurance brokerage
The foundation starts here.
Cornerstone Capital is an independent life-insurance brokerage that helps individuals, families and business owners understand what they have, what they may need, and how available options compare.
Where we begin
No one can tell you what you need until these are answered. Take them one at a time. Each one points somewhere specific.
One tool, many jobs
A death benefit is money that arrives at a known moment. What that money is for is the real decision. Start with the job, and the type of policy follows from it.
The household jobs. Most coverage is bought for one of these.
Income replacement, Family protection, Mortgage and home, Debt and liquidity, Final expenses, Childcare, Education, Support for a dependent, Time for a family to decide.
Riders that may let part of the death benefit be used while you are alive.
Terminal illness rider, Chronic illness rider, Critical illness rider, Accelerated death benefits.
Availability, definitions, triggers, costs and benefit reductions vary by policy, carrier and state. Using an accelerated benefit reduces what is paid at death.
Jobs with no end date, done by permanent coverage.
Lifelong death benefit, Cash value accumulation, Access through withdrawals or loans, Supplemental liquidity, Legacy, Juvenile policies, Future insurability.
Cash value builds slowly, after charges. Withdrawals and loans are available only where the contract permits, reduce the death benefit, and can have tax consequences. It is not money without a cost.
Funding for the agreements and obligations a company has.
Key person, Buy-sell funding, Partner protection, Business debt and personal guarantees, Succession, Estate equalization for family businesses, Executive benefit, Section 162 bonus, Split dollar.
Advanced planning concept, coordinate with tax and legal professionals
Life insurance can fund an agreement. It does not replace one.
What is left, to whom, and whether the estate has cash when it needs it.
Inheritance, Estate liquidity, Equalization among heirs, Charitable giving, Trust owned life insurance and ILIT concepts.
Advanced planning concept, coordinate with tax and legal professionals
Not every policy can do every job. The objective comes first and the product is chosen after it.
Not sure which job is yours? Find my starting point
Pathways
Keep the people you love in the home you chose, whatever happens to the income that pays for it.
Answer a few questionsReplace the paycheck your household runs on, for as long as it would be needed.
Answer a few questionsGive the people who rely on you time, options and room to grieve without a deadline.
Answer a few questionsSet aside a modest benefit so end-of-life costs do not land on someone else.
Answer a few questionsPlan for the loss of an owner, a partner or the person the company cannot run without.
Answer a few questionsUnderstand what permanent coverage can and cannot do before building a plan around it.
Answer a few questionsOur approach
We learn about the people, the obligations, the goals and the coverage you already have. Nothing is recommended before that.
We look at options and carriers based on your eligibility and your objectives, not on a single company's product shelf.
We explain the trade-offs in plain language, including the ones that argue against buying. Then the decision is yours.
Approval is never guaranteed. Eligibility and premium depend on age, health, underwriting and carrier criteria.
Why an independent brokerage
Two insurance companies can look at the same person and reach different answers. Underwriting rules, product availability, pricing, features and state availability all differ from one carrier to the next.
An independent broker may compare multiple carriers for that reason, subject to appointments, product availability, licensing and eligibility. The comparison is built around you, not around one company's shelf.
Carrier and product availability varies by state, producer appointment, eligibility and underwriting. Carrier logos and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Inclusion does not imply an endorsement of Cornerstone Capital.
The basics
Five kinds of coverage come up most often. None is best in general. Each one solves a different problem, and each has limits worth knowing before you compare.
Built to be understood before it's bought.
A fair question
They can advertise, but insurance advertising is regulated. Claims about products, benefits, rates and guarantees have rules behind them.
We think that is a good reason to explain the details instead of hiding them.
Home and mortgage
Life insurance you own individually pays the beneficiary you choose. Your family decides whether to pay off the mortgage, keep making payments, or use the money another way.
That is different from private mortgage insurance, which protects the lender if a borrower defaults. It is different from mortgage life insurance offered through a lender, which typically pays the lender and may decline as the balance falls. And it is different from homeowners insurance, which covers the property and liability.
Cornerstone Capital is not affiliated with any lender.
Business owners
A company often depends on a few people. Planning ahead gives partners, employees and families a clear path instead of a negotiation at the worst possible time.
This is not legal or tax advice. We work alongside your attorney and accountant.
Current policy review
See whether your existing policy still fits
Covered through the VA, a federal or public job, or work? See what it actually does: veterans, federal employees, state and local, through work.
Before replacing a policy
Never cancel existing coverage before replacement coverage is approved, accepted and in force, and carefully compared.
The Cornerstone Journal
Questions
Start with a conversation
Parents, grandparents, homeowners, business owners: the first step is the same. Share a little about your situation and a licensed broker will follow up by email, or by phone or text if you say so.
Not sure what to ask for? Explore what may fit my family
