Plenvest guides are educational and do not constitute financial, tax, or investment advice. They explain general concepts; your situation may differ. For personal guidance, talk to a licensed advisor.
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Plain-English guides to the concepts behind our calculators. No jargon for its own sake — just the ideas that change how much you keep.
Insurance & IUL
How IUL works
The plain-English guide to indexed universal life — floor, cap, fees, and loans. Start here.
Read →Is IUL a good investment?
An honest, balanced look at the real pros and cons — and why “investment” is the wrong frame.
Read →IUL vs Roth IRA
Costs, limits, taxes, and risk compared — and why they aren’t really competitors.
Read →Types of life insurance explained
Term, whole, universal, and IUL — what each does, who it suits, and the trade-offs.
Read →Term vs whole life insurance
Cost, duration, cash value, and the “buy term and invest the difference” debate.
Read →Cash value & cash surrender value
How cash value builds, how to access it, and what you actually get if you cash out a policy.
Read →How much life insurance do I need?
The DIME method with a free calculator — plus what that coverage costs and how to lower it.
Read →Final expense insurance
Smaller whole-life coverage for funeral and end-of-life costs — who it suits and what to watch.
Read →What is a LIRP?
Using life insurance for tax-advantaged retirement income — and who it really suits.
Read →Annuities vs IUL
Income vs death benefit — how the two products differ and who each suits.
Read →Taxes & Roth
Why tax diversification matters
You can’t predict future tax rates — so spread your savings across taxable, tax-deferred, and tax-free buckets.
Read →Roth IRA income limits, backdoor Roth & conversions
The MAGI phase-out, what to do if you earn too much, the backdoor Roth, and when conversions pay off.
Read →Tax-free retirement income
How each retirement income source is taxed — and the four ways to build a tax-free bucket.
Read →RMDs & inherited IRA rules
When RMDs start, how they're calculated, and the 10-year rule your heirs face.
Read →Is life insurance taxable?
When the death benefit, cash value, and loans are tax-free — and what can trigger a tax bill.
Read →Retirement & borrowing
Sequence-of-returns risk
Why two portfolios with the same average return can end very differently — and why the years near retirement matter most.
Read →The 4% rule & retirement income
Where the 4% rule comes from, where it breaks, and how to turn savings into a durable paycheck.
Read →When to claim Social Security
How your claiming age changes the check for life — and the survivor angle most couples miss.
Read →Do you need life insurance in retirement?
When you can drop coverage — and the reasons retirees keep it: survivor income, estate, and legacy.
Read →Protecting a surviving spouse
The income a household loses when one partner dies — and how to close that gap.
Read →Pension vs lump sum
Guaranteed income vs a one-time payout — the survivor trade-off and the pension maximization strategy.
Read →Long-term care planning
How to plan for care costs — including life insurance policies with long-term-care riders.
Read →Estate planning basics
Wills, beneficiaries, trusts — and how life insurance provides liquidity and a tax-free legacy.
Read →401(k) rollover options
Leaving a job? Your four options for the old 401(k), and the tax traps to avoid.
Read →Pay off your mortgage before retiring?
When clearing the mortgage helps — and when keeping cash and coverage is smarter.
Read →15-year vs 30-year mortgage
Payment vs total interest vs flexibility — and the 30-year-plus-extra-payments hybrid most people miss.
Read →