We know, we know: the financial industry isn’t exactly known for always being on the cutting edge of technology. Despite the talk that crops up every now and then about the advent of robo-advisors, much of our work is still done in-person or over the phone. We like talking to people the old-fashioned way: with our voices.

However, we’ll also be the first to admit that technology has a lot to offer our profession. If it helps us do our jobs better, we’re in (that’s why we recommended these five apps for financial advisors.)

That’s why we decided it was time to develop our own app to help the financial advisors we work with decide whether or not a life settlement might be right for their client. But instead of requiring periodic updates like most apps, we’ve embedded it right into our site, where it’s updated in real time.

To download it, all you have to do is visit ashargroup.com on your tablet or other mobile device, then tap the plug-in link to install the app on your phone. It works on both Apple and Android systems.

What does the app do?

The app is the mobile version of our proprietary Policy Value Quiz, which helps financial advisors see if their client’s life insurance policy might qualify for a life settlement solution.

Financial advisors answer seven quick questions about a client and his or her policy, covering:

  • The policy holder and their health
  • The policy type and status
  • Financial elements of the policy that influence outcomes

Then they receive a score which tells them how likely that policy is to qualify for a life settlement.

How can Ashar’s Policy Quiz help financial advisors?

Since the quiz only takes between one and two minutes to complete once you have the policy information available, it gives you an incredibly quick and easy way to decide whether to rule out a life settlement for your client, or continue looking into the possibility. This is ideal for advisors, who already have their hands full taking care of their clients’ various financial needs.

In addition, doing this quiz will save you time you might otherwise have had to spend researching the factors that influence whether your client’s policy would be eligible for a life settlement. As life settlement brokers, we deal with life settlements every single day - it’s what we do.

That’s why we created the quiz: so that advisors don’t have to take time out from doing what they do, managing their client’s funds, in order to explore this alternative method of liquidating an asset.

“With a decade of experience asking the right questions we can determine if a policy has potential,” says Ashar Group’s CEO, Jon Mendelsohn. “Now that power is in the hands of the professionals who are on the front lines helping clients.”

While life settlements have been a generally overlooked, sometimes misunderstood option for seniors looking to rid themselves of costly or unnecessary life insurance policies, that is slowly changing. The Secondary Market for life insurance has been growing over the past decade, and many industry professionals believe that it will only get stronger.

Combine this with the fact that some insurance companies are currently raising premiums on universal life insurance policies that were sold as many as 30 years ago, and you have a situation in which a life settlement can be a highly effective solution. These premium increases, as the Wall Street Journal has reported, are not small: for those with jumbo or multimillion-dollar policies, they can reach six figures.

As these changes take hold, more and more financial planners may see clients who want to liquidate their policies for the highest value possible.

“Financial professionals deserve every advantage to better assist their clients when it comes to life settlements,” Mendelsohn adds. “And as the Secondary Market continues to strengthen, so will the pace of new and innovative solutions like ours to serve them.”

Let Ashar help you help your clients - take the Policy Quiz today, and don’t forget to download it on to your mobile device.