logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2024
36m 57s

242: The Good, the Bad, and the Ethical ...

Hilary Hendershott, CFP
About this episode

Welcome to the second in my two-part series on what are possibly the most misunderstood insurance products out there: annuities and whole life insurance.

Our goal at Hendershott Wealth Management is to help you build wealth–and a legacy that lasts. Part of that process is protecting your wealth, and that’s why getting the right insurance matters so much!

I’ve avoided covering these topics until now because it’s really difficult to find someone who can be considered an expert who isn’t also trying to sell you a policy. But then, I realized I can find product experts who are no longer selling the product–like today’s guest, Ashley Foster.

Ashley used to make a living by selling whole life insurance policies, but over time he realized that he didn’t want to sell insurance–he wanted to do comprehensive fiduciary financial planning like we do at HWM.

He gave up earning huge commissions that funded luxury trips with parties DJ’d by someone from the Beastie Boys (true story) to pursue a more meaningful career; one that allows him to focus on what will be the most helpful to his clients, instead of trying to sell them expensive insurance they likely don’t need.

These days, Ashley runs his own firm, Nxt:Gen Financial Planning, and loves to go on vacations–that weren’t funded by commissions–with his wife and their adorable cat, François. (Make sure you check out our YouTube channel to see Frankie’s adorable unflappability!)

Ashley joined me on this episode of the podcast to demystify the world of whole life insurance policies.

From the actual cost for consumers to the loss of potential returns vs. investing in the stock market over the same time period, he breaks down the good, the bad, and the ethical gray areas of whole life insurance. 👇

Here’s what you’ll learn in this week’s episode of Love, your Money:

  • What led Ashley to become an expert on whole life insurance 
  • How becoming a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional changed the direction of Ashley’s career 
  • What a whole life insurance contract is, and how it limits your long term financial growth
  • The true cost of a whole life policy–from opportunity risk vs investing, to the cost of premiums relative to potential benefit payouts
  • How transparency, compliance, disclosure, and conflicts of interest influence insurance sales
  • The circumstances in which purchasing a whole life insurance policy make sense, like guaranteeing an inheritance for heirs or covering estate taxes
  • Whether Ashley still recommends whole life insurance to clients now that his income isn’t reliant on those sales

    …and more. (Spoiler alert: He doesn’t recommend these policies, and neither do I!)


Show Notes

To get access to the full show notes, including all the resources mentioned, visit: https://hendershottwealth.com/podcast/ashley-foster

Follow Hilary on:
Twitter
LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook
YouTube

Subscribe to Love, your Money

Hendershott Wealth Management, LLC and Love, your Money do not make specific investment recommendations on Love, your Money or in any public media. Any specific mentions of funds or investments are strictly for illustrative purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice or acted upon by individual investors. The opinions expressed in this episode are those of Hilary Hendershott, CFP®, MBA.

Up next
Aug 5
289: FSAs vs. HSAs: Hidden Opportunities for Wealth, Health, and Smarter Spending
Today on Love, Your Money®, HWM’s lead financial advisor, Hollina Wadsworth takes the mic to talk about two often-overlooked tools that can have a surprisingly big impact on your tax planning and long-term wealth building: FSAs and HSAs.The truth is that HSAs/FSAs aren’t just exp ... Show More
20m 58s
Jul 29
288: Ask Hilary: Late Starts, Establishing Financial Space, and Responsibly Supporting Others
Welcome back to Ask Hilary, where we tackle real-life money questions from women navigating change. Because if there’s one constant in our financial lives, it’s change. We grow. We move. We change careers, enter new relationships, end others, care for family, and—somewhere in the ... Show More
22m 58s
Jul 22
287: Self-Worth, Solo Aging, and Smart Money Moves with Jean Chatzky
It’s time to take off your judgy pants, Money Lover, because today we’re sitting down with Jean Chatzky, CEO and co-founder of HerMoney, to talk about the real-world challenges women face when it comes to building wealth—and we’re doing it without shame, guilt, or financial jargo ... Show More
20m 46s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2025
Ask an Adviser: Pay off mortgage or invest, biggest super mistakes, when to see an adviser - Glen Hare
Ask an Advisor is back for 2025. This is the series where we put your money and investing questions to some of Australia's best financial advisers. Today we're joined in the studio by Glen Hare, cofounder & financial adviser at Fox & Hare. In this episode he answers questions on: ... Show More
48m 46s
Jun 2
Ask an Adviser: Don't do this with your super & tax-efficient investing for kids + more
How do you make smart money decisions when you don’t know what your future looks like? That’s the question to start this episode.Alex and Scott, co-founders of Everest Wealth, join us to unpack big financial questions from the Equity Mates community. Whether you’re juggling savin ... Show More
46m 45s
Jul 14
Ask An Adviser: The Biggest Financial Decision You'll Make - Glen Hare
The biggest financial decision you'll ever make is who you spend the rest of your life with. Today we're joined by Glen Hare, financial adviser and cofounder of Fox & Hare, to unpack everything money and love. If you've ever wondered when is the right time to merge accounts, how ... Show More
43m 3s
Oct 2024
What is the best way to save for your children's future? Ask Us Anything
You asked us: How should those of us who have learned about investing and understand the meaning of these terms go about explaining these things to close friends and family who haven’t? How can I be more patient? I want to be a long-term, passive investor but find it difficult no ... Show More
13m 45s
Jun 2024
Ep. 93 How To Start Investing, Clear Your Debt & Take Control Of Your Finances With Simran Kaur
Simran Kaur is a VC, angel investor, financial columnist and the founder of Girls That Invest, the world’s largest investing podcast for women. She’s received so many accolades in her time, from Young New Zealander of the Year, to Forbes30u30, but she’s started out in healthcare ... Show More
1h 1m
Aug 2024
85. Investing lessons from the best and worst decisions we've made feat. Equity Mates
You can read every resource ever published. You can watch every finance news broadcast ever recorded. And you can speak with every financial adviser under the sun. But sometimes, the investing lessons that stick with you are the ones you learn the hard way. And that, dear listene ... Show More
23m 15s
Nov 2024
The hidden crisis in the UK economy
UK public companies are trading at 50p on the £1. We've decimated our public markets, which has a huge effect on the economy, stagnating wage growth. How did we get here and what do we do about it, asks an impassioned Andrew Craig, author of How To Own The World and founder of Pl ... Show More
1h 9m
Dec 2024
ARCHIVE: The one thing you need to invest in (to beat 95% of professional investors)
For Christmas we've gone into the archive to dig out one of our favourite episodes.Everyone talks about diversification, but how diverse do you really need to be? Can you just invest in one fund? Ramin Nakisa is personal finance YouTube royalty in the UK. He walks us through some ... Show More
1h 1m
Mar 2025
Investment Clinic: I’m an ethical investor – but I can’t kick crypto
Software engineer Stephan has a problem. As an early backer of bitcoin, he has made a lot of paper profit from cryptocurrencies, which now make up about a fifth of his portfolio. But Stephan’s also a big believer in ethical investing, including green investments. Given the energy ... Show More
29m 51s
Dec 2024
An economist’s guide to getting rich the right way
Erik Angner is a PhD economist, philosopher, and author of ‘How Economics Can Save the World’. He says economics holds the answers to how we solve the world’s biggest problems, including how you can get rich. 🤝 Want help planning your future from a financial advisor?Get personal ... Show More
1h 16m