May 10, 2010
BOOK REVIEW: 'Bank On Yourself': Alternative to Traditional Savings, Retirement Plans Sounds Too Good to be True
Reviewed By David M. Kinchen
Huntingtonnews.net Book Critic
Don't go to your stockbroker or an ordinary financial adviser to get an opinion on the investment plan outlined by Pamela Yellen in "Bank On Yourself: The Life-Changing Secret to Growing and Protecting Your Financial Future" (Vanguard Press, a member of the Perseus Book Group, 247 pages, $15.95).
Yellen says this is because brokers (what a deliciously appropriate name, considering the state of many 401(k) stock-based retirement plans in the wake of the financial meltdown that began about three years ago and the roller-coaster effect of last week's market plunge) make money on trading -- something they have in common with many financial planners.
Yellen says that most insurance agents don't even know about the particular form of whole life insurance that is the basis for the B.O.Y. program described in her easy-to-read and understand book. I noted the absence of an index, which -- along with a glossary of terms -- would have made this useful book even better.
Yellen hints at a conspiracy of silence to keep B.O.Y. unknown to the millions of Americans who've seen their stock market based retirement plans hammered beyond recognition and their dreams of tapping home equity destroyed by a dramatic decline in the value of residential real estate.
Wall Street, banks and credit card companies don't want you to become your own banker by purchasing one or more B.O.Y. dividend whole life policies because they make money by investors who are following conventional wisdom prescribed by people like Suze Orman and Dave Ramsey. Yes, Yellen singles out these two high-profile investment gurus who have gone on record as opposing certain forms of life insurance. Yellen says Orman and Ramsey aren't talking about the particular brand of dividend paying whole life insurance in the B.O.Y. program -- and that the vast majority of insurance agents don't even know about the companies involved. This is because only a few companies qualify for the B.O.Y. program, she says.
Yellen asks the question:"Can you imagine what it would be like to look forward to opening your account statements because they always have good news and never any ugly surprises?" and answers it by providing profiles of a number of investors among the more than 100,000 Americans of all ages, incomes, and backgrounds who are already using Bank On Yourself to grow a nest-egg they can predict and count on, even when stocks, real estate, and other investments tumble.
These B.O.Y. investors have used the program to finance personal and business goals, including purchasing cars and trucks by borrowing the money from their plans and paying the loans back in a way that increases the value of their plans.
I was skeptical about the plan, so I Googled and found a site (http://www.debt-tips.com/build-wealth.html) that said B.O.Y. works and is not a scam. Sometimes something that sounds too good to be true really is and it made me wish I had discovered it years ago. I still might be able to get on board (see below).
The above referenced site said that B.O.Y. is "simply a way of controlling your money -- so the banks don't control it for you....Instead of getting a loan from a bank, you have your own plan (with your own money) that you could get a loan from - for whatever reason, whenever you want. Then whenever you take out a loan, you pay yourself the principal and interest.... instead of the bank making money from your loan and the interest ... you're the one who collects the money and interest."
The catch is that you need to find a financial planner who specializes in setting up "Bank On Yourself" plans.
Yellen provides 10 ways how the B.O.Y. plan can turn you into your own banker (isn't that a dream that many of us share?) who will help you control your money in the following ways:
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BOOK REVIEW: 'Bank On Yourself': Alternative to Traditional Savings, Retirement Plans Sounds Too Good to be True
Reviewed By David M. Kinchen
Huntingtonnews.net Book Critic
Don't go to your stockbroker or an ordinary financial adviser to get an opinion on the investment plan outlined by Pamela Yellen in "Bank On Yourself: The Life-Changing Secret to Growing and Protecting Your Financial Future" (Vanguard Press, a member of the Perseus Book Group, 247 pages, $15.95).
Yellen says this is because brokers (what a deliciously appropriate name, considering the state of many 401(k) stock-based retirement plans in the wake of the financial meltdown that began about three years ago and the roller-coaster effect of last week's market plunge) make money on trading -- something they have in common with many financial planners.
Yellen says that most insurance agents don't even know about the particular form of whole life insurance that is the basis for the B.O.Y. program described in her easy-to-read and understand book. I noted the absence of an index, which -- along with a glossary of terms -- would have made this useful book even better.
Yellen hints at a conspiracy of silence to keep B.O.Y. unknown to the millions of Americans who've seen their stock market based retirement plans hammered beyond recognition and their dreams of tapping home equity destroyed by a dramatic decline in the value of residential real estate.
Wall Street, banks and credit card companies don't want you to become your own banker by purchasing one or more B.O.Y. dividend whole life policies because they make money by investors who are following conventional wisdom prescribed by people like Suze Orman and Dave Ramsey. Yes, Yellen singles out these two high-profile investment gurus who have gone on record as opposing certain forms of life insurance. Yellen says Orman and Ramsey aren't talking about the particular brand of dividend paying whole life insurance in the B.O.Y. program -- and that the vast majority of insurance agents don't even know about the companies involved. This is because only a few companies qualify for the B.O.Y. program, she says.
Yellen asks the question:"Can you imagine what it would be like to look forward to opening your account statements because they always have good news and never any ugly surprises?" and answers it by providing profiles of a number of investors among the more than 100,000 Americans of all ages, incomes, and backgrounds who are already using Bank On Yourself to grow a nest-egg they can predict and count on, even when stocks, real estate, and other investments tumble.
These B.O.Y. investors have used the program to finance personal and business goals, including purchasing cars and trucks by borrowing the money from their plans and paying the loans back in a way that increases the value of their plans.
I was skeptical about the plan, so I Googled and found a site (http://www.debt-tips.com/build-wealth.html) that said B.O.Y. works and is not a scam. Sometimes something that sounds too good to be true really is and it made me wish I had discovered it years ago. I still might be able to get on board (see below).
The above referenced site said that B.O.Y. is "simply a way of controlling your money -- so the banks don't control it for you....Instead of getting a loan from a bank, you have your own plan (with your own money) that you could get a loan from - for whatever reason, whenever you want. Then whenever you take out a loan, you pay yourself the principal and interest.... instead of the bank making money from your loan and the interest ... you're the one who collects the money and interest."
The catch is that you need to find a financial planner who specializes in setting up "Bank On Yourself" plans.
Yellen provides 10 ways how the B.O.Y. plan can turn you into your own banker (isn't that a dream that many of us share?) who will help you control your money in the following ways:
1. Create your own financing system, so you can get back the ENTIRE purchase price of everything from cars and boats to vacations, college educations and medical expenses!You can learn more about the investment/retirement plan described by Yellen at www.BankOnYourself.com. It's worth looking into. And, Yellen says, even if you think you're too old to get started, think again: Even older people who don't think they can get insured because of health problems can join the ranks of B.O.Y. investors by insuring another person. She says wealthy people have been using B.O.Y. plans for decades and it's about time for ordinary people to use a program that the rich have kept hidden all these years.
2. Grow your nest-egg safely, every single year, without losing any sleep.
3. Learn the little-known strategy America's wealthy have used for a century to legally reduce their taxes - and how you can benefit from it, too.
4. Buy a new car, borrow the money from your bank, and pay yourself the interest
5. Establish an emergency fund (if you don't have one, this alone is a reason to start banking on yourself!)
6. Leave more wealth to your heirs than you could otherwise & create a legacy for future generations by teaching the "Bank On Yourself" to your children and grandchildren.
7. Allows you recapture the interest you used to pay to other lending institutions. If you're financing any major purchase the ordinary way by using a bank, credit union, dealer financing, or putting it on a credit card - you could actually be putting those interest and finance charges in your own pocket and turn them into a tax-free income for life.
8. Create a tax-free retirement income fund
9. Your transactions are private, controlled by your own bank, and are not dependent on credit ratings (and you can withdraw money whenever you want, and pay back how much you want).
10. It's a strategy almost anyone can benefit from, regardless of age or income.
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