Luke Tatum

I have spoken to a lot of people about financing the various things in their lives using a properly-designed whole life insurance policy from a mutual insurer. I recommend using these policies like your own bank, but sometimes I hear people say they can just “bank” with a different asset. Confident that they have fully […]

Recently, a few people have contacted me with this question. News outlets are reporting much higher numbers of life insurance death claims in the United States and in other countries. What does that mean for using dividend-paying whole life insurance from a mutual insurance company as a financial foundation for your family? (And mine?) In

Maybe you have been intrigued by a topic on this site, and have decided to read more. It’s hard to know where to start, especially when there is a lot of material out there that is misleading, or even just plain wrong. This list goes way beyond understanding whole life insurance, but rather spreads into

Marketing material from major financial firms is always quick to highlight the benefits of tax-deferral, sometimes simply called tax-deferred growth. 401(k)s, 403(b)s, traditional Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), and some other tax-qualified plans have this characteristic. Giving some additional thought to the claims of marketers is usually worthwhile. That goes double when the source of this

There are many stereotypes, which certainly have merit in some cases, when it comes to financial professionals, insurance agents, financial advisors, etc. You know these complaints before you read them: They just care about money. They will say anything to make a sale. They don’t actually care about what’s good for you, they just want

Ah, estate planning! One of the Most Boring Topics on Earth, found in such company as economics, budgeting, history, and taxes. However, like economics, budgeting, history, and taxes, estate planning is something you ignore at your own peril. (And the peril of future generations!) What is Estate Planning? This planning deals with questions like this:

Privacy-by-default. Depending on who you talk to in 2022 America, privacy can mean wildly different things. The worst take on this subject is, “if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.” These people tend to see anything related to privacy, secrecy, or encryption as “bad” in an abstract sense. “What are you

There are a multitude of reasons to store and grow your wealth inside a properly-designed whole life insurance policy with a mutual insurer. A question many people are asking right now is how to fight inflation. As it turns out, using the life insurance strategy means your household will no longer contribute to the inflation

Our Own Experience I have a special fondness for the “paying cash for everything” approach, because that is how we lived for several years. My wife, Lauren, and I had been very inspired by none other than Dave Ramsey. Early in our marriage, we were in a lot of credit card debt. We had a baby to