Richard Florida Introduces the Philips Livable Cities Award
The Philips Livable Cities Award is an initiative designed to generate practical, achievable ideas for improving the health and well-being of people living in cities. Individuals, community or non-governmental organizations and businesses are eligible to participate in the Award program that comprises a total prize fund amounting to 125,000 Euros.
With the aim of developing simple solutions to the complex challenges faced by the residents of cities today, the program consists of three distinct award categories:
- Well-being Outdoors: initiatives that will help citizens feel safe in public spaces or help create city identity and foster a sense of belonging
- Independent Living: initiatives that will help the growing number of elderly people living alone to feel secure and comfortable in a city, with appropriate access to healthcare
- Healthy Lifestyle at Work and Home: initiatives that will support a healthy body and mind, whether through a person’s surroundings or via other essentials such as exercise, sleep and diet.
An overall award of 75,000 Euros will be granted for the best idea submitted in any of the three categories. There will also be two additional awards of 25,000 Euros each for the best submissions in the two categories not covered in the overall award. The award criteria will be developed by an international panel of experts chaired by Richard Florida, author of The Great Reset, Director of the Martin Prosperity Institute and Professor of Business and Creativity at Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto.
Find out more about the Award and how to enter at www.philips.com/because
Read MoreSearching for Lower Insurance Rates
With the declines over the years of term life insurance, you might want to consider dropping your older policy and shopping for a new lower-cost policy. But first, make sure the newer policy is the same coverage as your current one.
Also, take into account the fact that you were younger when you bought the policy you have now and your health status may have changed. A newer policy will certainly have a new contestable period. The word “contestable” is an insurance terms meaning that for the time period when something in your application, such as your health or your age, could be used to deny a claim. This is generally in effect for a year or so from the beginning of the policy. So when you apply for a new policy, you will then be subject to a new contestable period. For this reason, be sure to start the new policy before you end the old one.
It is more difficult to make comparisons to the cash value of life insurance. Life insurance is regulated by “State Insurance Departments” so it is advised that you contact the Insurance Department in your state to get a “replacement comparison” chart. With help from a representative of the new insurer, this chart can then be filled out.
Insurance Reviews
Occasionally an insurance representative will review your policy in an attempt to update beneficiary designation and to spot other things that may need to be updated. This is done as a service to policyholders and should not be seen as a way to sell you more insurance.
Gaps in your insurance could be found through this service and even things you could be unaware of like financial needs in another area. At that point, your agent can suggest ways to fill in those gaps. These reviews are a good thing and if you are happy with the insurance company and with your agent, you should welcome this service as a way to review your coverage.
If you would rather have an unbiased opinion, you can certainly hire an independent financial planner to do the review for you. In this way you will not feel as if you are obligated to buy more insurance. An independent agent will not be in a position to sell you anything. But, no matter who does the review, you can just make it known that you are under no obligation to make any purchases when agreeing to having the review.
Get the Best Deal on Insurance
Once that you have decided that you need life insurance, you should buy it as soon as possible because your age is a key variable when it comes to the price you will pay. To get the most from your hard earned dollar, term life insurance would be a good choice when selecting which type of insurance you will purchase.
Your employer might off group life insurance and this you should take into consideration also. In this way, your insurance could be bought at a lower cost because it will be part of a group and not just one person. If additional coverage is something you feel you will need, then consider getting a number of quotes. These can be found from online sites or from agents of other insurance companies.
Decide how long you want to coverage to be and then check rices for the length of times. If the amount of coverage you want will decline over time, then maybe you want to consider reducing your premiums by looking into a declining term insurance policy. One reason for a decline over time might be when it is intended to provide income for your kids or mortgage money and maybe other obligations.
What is Available
Do you really need life insurance? Not all of us do but if you have family or others who are dependent on the income you bring in, you do. Life insurance should be considered as a way to protect those loved ones. Picking a policy right for you can be difficult if you don’t understand what is available.
Certainly you want to consult a professional before you buy so begin by doing some research on each type. There are three types of insurance and two variations. The basic ones are term life, variable life and whole life. The variations are then universal life and variable universal life.
Term is the least expensive and pay a lump sum when you die. Whole cost a little more and money invested will grow over time. Variable a little higher again, is low risk and a tax free account. Universal is more flexible than variable, tax deferred and can be riskier than others. Universal variable is the most flexible and expensive. You have control of cash values but requires you to manage you own accounts. It also offers stocks, money markets and bond funds.
What are your Needs?
Do you really need it? This is the first question you should ask yourself. The purpose behind life insurance is to have that source of income for you children, spouse or dependents in the unforeseen event of your death. Estate planning is another reason for this insurance. You could give money to a charity when your time comes, or pay your funeral and burial costs and even provide for a buy-out for the interest of a business.
Only you know whether or not your need it and that depends on if anyone is relying on the income you bring in. Anyone with kids or spouse, parent or another individual could probably use life insurance. But if you don’t own a business, are not married or have no kids, then it is likely you do not even need life insurance.
If you think life insurance is for you, then the next step is to decide which policy is right for you. Generally, there are two categories: term and cash value. Term is set for a specific amount of time and if you die with that time frame, the insurer pays your survivors. Cash value, besides paying death benefits, there is also a redeemable value during your lifetimes.