An Overview of Bank On Yourself

Early on in my trek to developing and applying the Perpetual Wealth Code™, I was approached by a recruiter. This recruiter worked for a large marketing group that promotes the Bank On Yourself brand. The objective was to enlist me to represent Bank On Yourself as an agent instead of remaining an independent agent working directly for my clients.

McFie Insurance is not part of Bank on Yourself. We are an independent brand that works directly for clients who want to keep more of the money they make, grow their wealth, and have financial peace of mind. So, how does bank on yourself work? This article will address your questions about Bank on Yourself.

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What is Bank on Yourself?

Bank on Yourself is about putting money into a whole life insurance policy and then using that money when you need cash instead of going to a bank, emptying your bank account, or selling investments. When you pass away, the insurance pays off the loans, and any remaining money goes to your beneficiaries, usually your family. Instead of getting a loan from a bank, you essentially borrow from your own policy. Your credit score and the reason for the loan don’t matter; you can always get a loan based on the terms you agreed to when you got the policy. So, you’re essentially “banking on yourself” instead of relying on a bank.

The idea is to have your money working in many places at the same time, rather than in just one place.

How Does Bank On Yourself Work?

If you’re familiar with Bank on Yourself or have read Bank on Yourself reviews, you may already have some idea of how the principle works. If you aren’t familiar with Bank on Yourself, it’s one of many different financial philosophies like Infinite Banking, The Infinite Banking Concept, Private Family Banking, the 770 account, and others. All of these philosophies and programs have a foundation in the general principle that a life insurance policy can be used to build savings, and ultimately, allow you to leverage cash values for self-financing.

Obviously, I leverage this same principle and recommend it to many of our clients. But it’s just a subsequent detail of the bigger picture. Unfortunately, we’ve also seen some of these programs like Bank on Yourself fail to prioritize individual client success, which is our main focus at McFie Insurance. This is just one of a few Bank on Yourself problems.

I turned the offer down to work as a Bank on Yourself agent. The rest, as they say, is history. You see, I wanted to pursue a path that allowed me to provide what I believed to be the very best for each of my clients and prospective clients. Besides, I didn’t want to get distracted by the ideas of some marketing group or guru about how to sell more or expand my commissions.

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The Advantages of Bank on Yourself

When you use the Bank On Yourself strategy, your money is kept safe and secure, and it doesn’t depend on the stock market. Instead, it’s placed in a special type of life insurance policy that pays dividends. This policy is backed by some of the most established and financially stable insurance companies in the world.
Bank On Yourself-type policies offer a guaranteed and predictable way for your money to grow. Unlike the stock market, real estate, or other investments that can be unpredictable, these policies provide steady growth without the ups and downs.
Your money in a Bank On Yourself policy grows efficiently because it compounds over time, meaning it earns more each year. You can count on it consistently increasing, and there are no years when it goes down in value.
The Bank On Yourself strategy is much safer and practical compared to buying term life insurance and trying to invest the leftover money. Relying on investments alone can be risky, as market crashes have shown, and it’s not a reliable way to ensure your financial security.
With the Bank On Yourself concept, you enjoy tax advantages. The money in these policies grows tax-free, and if managed correctly, you can withdraw retirement income from your policy without paying income tax. Plus, there’s a tax-free death benefit for your loved ones or chosen charities.
Bank On Yourself-type policies offer unparalleled safety due to multiple layers of protection, including oversight by state insurance commissioners and significant cash reserves required by law.
Bank On Yourself is a versatile wealth-building strategy that works in any economic situation. It has a track record of success spanning almost two centuries, surviving economic challenges like the Great Depression and more recent recessions.
Bank On Yourself-type policies provide quick access to your money in case of emergencies. You can easily borrow a significant portion of your policy’s cash value without complicated applications or fees, and you’ll have the funds within days.
The Bank On Yourself concept gives you access to money without selling your assets. When you borrow against your life insurance policy, it remains intact, and any outstanding loan is deducted from the death benefit if you pass away. And even while a loan is outstanding the policy will continue to grow.
Using the Bank On Yourself strategy puts you in control of your money, unlike 401(k) plans that often have restrictions and penalties for early withdrawals. You can access funds whenever you need them and decide how and when to repay them for future use.

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The Disadvantages of Bank on Yourself

Here are the most common problems facing the Bank On Yourself Concept:

Obtaining a policy designed to create high cash values, rather than yielding high commissions for the selling agent
Making the policy become a tax liability by not precisely following the IRS rules and regulations when taking loans and withdrawals
The policy can become an expense instead of an asset if premium payments are stopped prematurely

Here is a short Bank On Yourself review, if you will, that covers some of the reasons I prefer not to represent Bank On Yourself.

Accepting the Bank on Yourself offer would have inhibited me and the team at McFie Insurance From providing the assistance we are so well known for today. Whether it is finding the best product or company, writing articles and publishing videos, or designing beneficial financial blueprints for clients, McFie Insurance is about service. Belonging to a large marketing group would have restricted our ability to provide these services.

At the time, one of the stipulations required to join Bank on Yourself was to give up the right to choose which life insurance company their clients’ life insurance applications were submitted to. That didn’t make sense to me then, and it certainly doesn’t make sense to me today. The responsibility to know what different companies offer and the art involved in finding the product and strategy that best fits our clients’ needs are very important to us at McFie Insurance. It makes a huge difference in how successful our clients can become.

Speaking of design, designing the best policy for the needs of our client or prospect is something we take great pride in accomplishing here at McFie Insurance. Without the right policy design, unintended things can happen to the policy owner. But we’ve got your back. Participating whole life insurance is a great place to hold your savings while allowing you to still leverage and manage money that normally wouldn’t be under your direct control.

For example, policies designed with bundled term coverage, in order to increase policy premiums, can cripple your control over the extra money paid in premiums, therefore, creating a financial liability, a monetary loss, and even excessive taxation in the future. At the same time, a term rider can be beneficial in certain situations, knowing when and how to use a term rider is critical.

At McFie Insurance, we don’t believe owning life insurance is an investment. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that life insurance is an asset. Several states have laws prohibiting life insurance from being sold or classified as an investment. One of the reasons for these laws is that purchasing life insurance will NOT make you rich. Not even if you purchase multiple policies, leverage one policy to purchase another, or borrow money from your policy/policies and pay the loan(s) back with extra interest.

All of these things are certainly doable and at times may even be practical, but they are not always as profitable for the policy owner as they are for the marketing group or agent(s) advocating these practices. Here are the real reasons participating whole life insurance is such a valuable financial asset:

It can cover your liabilities.
It can be part of a non-qualified tax-free retirement plan.
It can be used to finance asset purchases.
It can help you recover the cost of acquisition on things you purchase.

These four qualities of life insurance are the reason banking corporations choose to own and use life insurance. At McFie Insurance, we help our clients understand how to utilize participating whole life insurance. Joining Bank on Yourself would have limited McFie Insurance from referencing “banking,” according to the recruiter. And that would have limited our ability to help you benefit from those four reasons.

At McFie Insurance we love liberty and freedom. Belonging to a group such as Bank on Yourself limits our freedom to share the entire truth simply to create a more easily marketed, “uniform” product, which doesn’t work with our worldview.

Key Considerations Before Choosing the Bank On Yourself Method

Before deciding to use the Bank On Yourself strategy with whole life insurance, there are some important things to be aware of:

Research a Trusted Insurance Company or Agent

Not all life insurance companies or agents are well-suited for implementing the Bank On Yourself concept. Look for an insurance company with a long track record of financial strength and stability that offers high-quality dividend-paying whole life policies. Ideally, work with an independent insurance agent who specializes in designing policies for Bank On Yourself and similar strategies. They should be very knowledgeable about the intricacies of policy design and be able to clearly explain how your policy will work.

Be wary of agents who seem more focused on selling you the largest possible policy than on designing a policy to achieve your specific goals. If an illustration seems too good to be true compared to the guaranteed values, ask questions and make sure you understand what assumptions are being made. Don’t let an agent pressure you into a policy you’re uncomfortable with.

Make Sure the Policy Is Properly Structured

The Bank On Yourself strategy relies on having a specially-designed whole life policy with the right riders and provisions to maximize early cash value and long-term growth. Key things to look for include:

The policy should be a participating (dividend-paying) whole life policy from a mutual insurance company, not a universal life policy.
Include a paid-up additions (PUA) rider funded up to the MEC limit to boost early cash value. Avoid policies that use term riders to increase PUAs above the MEC limit, as this can harm long-term performance.
Aim for maximum long-term cash value growth rather than a high first-year cash value at the expense of future growth. Well-designed policies often have 50-70% of the first year’s premium in cash value.
Make sure the policy is NOT classified as a modified endowment contract (MEC) to preserve tax advantages.
Check for favorable provisions regarding timing of PUA payments, recognition of PUAs in dividend calculations, and any direct or non-direct recognition of policy loans.

Having your policy structured properly from the start is crucial for the success of a Bank On Yourself plan. Consult with an experienced agent to make sure you get a tailored policy design that will meet your needs.

While Bank On Yourself can be a powerful financial strategy, implementation matters. Taking time to find a trusted agent and properly structure your policy can make the difference between an underperforming policy and one that helps you reach your financial goals.

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Bank On Yourself Is Not A Source of Retirement Income

One misconception about the Bank On Yourself strategy is that it is a retirement income solution. While a well-designed whole life policy can be a valuable asset to have in retirement, the primary purpose of Bank On Yourself is to build a source of personal financing during your working years rather than to provide retirement income.

The cash value growth in a Bank On Yourself policy is intended to be used via policy loans to finance major purchases, investments, business expenses, or other needs. You pay yourself back with interest, recapturing the cost of financing that would normally go to an outside lender while your policy continues growing. Over time, this allows you to keep more of your own money while building a substantial cash value “bank.”

However, once you start systematically withdrawing cash value for retirement income, you’re depleting the “bank” rather than growing it. Withdrawals up to your cost basis are generally tax-free, but any gains beyond that are taxable. If your policy lapses with a loan balance exceeding your cost basis, the outstanding loan becomes a taxable distribution.

For this reason, a whole life policy should not be your only retirement savings. It’s best to have a balanced approach with other income sources like 401(k)s, IRAs, Social Security, annuities, investments etc. You can then be more selective with policy loans in retirement and treat your cash value as a conservative portion of your overall portfolio.

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That said, there are ways a whole life policy can still supplement retirement income, such as:

Using dividends to pay premiums, freeing up cash flow.
Timing policy loans to avoid drawing from volatile investments in down markets
Annuitizing the policy for guaranteed lifetime income (though this reduces the death benefit)
Selling the policy for a life settlement

The key is understanding that while Bank On Yourself can help you reach retirement with more wealth by recapturing financing costs along the way, the primary focus is on efficient cash flow management and growth during your working years, not as a dedicated retirement vehicle. With proper planning and a whole life policy to complement your other assets, you’ll have more financial flexibility to enjoy retirement on your own terms.

Discover Whole Life Insurance With McFie Insurance

McFie Insurance is a highly reviewed, independent life insurance agency in the United States. We help people keep more of the money they make, grow their wealth, and have financial peace of mind. There are two criteria we use no matter whom we are working with:

Is it affordable?
Is it comfortable?

We know if it isn’t affordable, you can’t do it and if it’s not comfortable, you won’t do it. Our mission is to make sure you know ALL your options so that you can make an informed choice that is comfortable, affordable, and profitable for you.

For people who want to use Participating whole life insurance to keep more of the money they make, grow their wealth, and have financial peace of mind, we recommend they schedule a strategy session with us. We’ll answer your questions and show you how properly designed participating whole life insurance can help you keep more of the money you make, grow your wealth and have financial peace of mind. After a strategy session with us, you will know if whole life insurance is right for you.

We do not currently charge for a strategy sessions, and we don’t require you to purchase insurance from us after your strategy session. Most of the people who meet with us can benefit from whole life insurance and we get paid for selling life insurance. But, some people can’t benefit from whole life insurance, and selling a policy to someone who can’t benefit from it would be no help at all. We like to help people keep more of the money they make, grow their wealth and have financial peace of mind.

Schedule by phone: 702-660-7000