Morton Mutual Insurance

Whole Life

Whole life is permanent coverage; it stays in force for your entire life as long as premiums are paid, with no expiration date. The premium is locked in the day you buy it and never increases, and the policy builds guaranteed cash value you can borrow against later. It fits people who want something that will definitely pay out and won't be reevaluated as they age. Because it's priced for permanence, most buyers use it as a foundation covering final expenses and leaving family a clean slate, rather than as full income replacement.

Term Life

Term life covers you for a set number of years, usually ten to thirty, and pays a death benefit if you die during that window. Dollar for dollar it's the least expensive way to buy a large amount of coverage, so it's the right fit when you have obligations with an end date — a mortgage, kids to get through school, a business loan. You choose the length to match those years. The tradeoff is that when the term is up, the coverage stops and there's no cash value left behind, though many policies can be converted to permanent coverage before then.

Indexed Universal Life

An IUL is permanent life insurance with a cash value component tied to a market index, like the S&P 500. Your money isn't invested in the market; the insurance company holds it and credits interest based on how the index moves. You don't own shares or receive dividends. The index is just the measuring stick.That's why the policy can offer a floor. Since the cash value isn't sitting in the market, a down year in the index doesn't pull money out of the account. Most policies set that floor at 0%. The tradeoff is on the upside: the same structure caps how much of a gain gets credited, so strong years are credited at less than the full index move.Premiums are flexible within limits, and cash value can be accessed through loans or withdrawals during your lifetime. Insurance costs come out of the policy each year, so how it's funded at the start matters more than with most products.

Annuities

An annuity is a contract with an insurance company: you hand over a lump sum or a series of payments, and the company pays you income for a defined period or for the rest of your life. It's built for people at or near retirement whose main concern isn't growth anymore; it's not running out of money. Payments can start right away or be deferred to a later date you pick. The tradeoff is liquidity: the money is committed, and withdrawing more than the allowed amount too early triggers surrender charges.