John Hancock Simplifies CLTs with Illustration Software

Boston - Cutting-edge concept illustration software is at the heart of a new program at the Advanced Markets unit of John Hancock Life Insurance Co. to enable producers to create a presentation of a Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) specifically tailored to their client's situation.

Designed to help high net worth clients support a favorite charity (or charities) while reducing the value of their taxable estate and transferring an asset to their heirs at a gift tax discount, CLTs assets can be leveraged when life insurance is used to significantly increase the total amount transferred to heirs with minimal reduction in benefit to the charity.

"Charitable Lead Trusts are a very effective wealth management planning tool for high net worth individuals. They are, however, also sophisticated and quite complex. As a result, we think they are an underutilized tool for producers and clients," said Randy Zipse, vice president, John Hancock Advanced Markets Unit. "With this new module, producers will be able to clearly and effectively walk their clients through the concept and show them how a CLT with life insurance might well serve their particular needs."

The concept illustration software is powered by JH solutions, John Hancock's own system software program that enables financial advisors to illustrate complex cases and quickly create easy-to-understand product ledgers, flowcharts, and graphs to help producers familiarize clients with the charitable lead trusts on a conceptual level. For clients looking to move forward with a CLT, the software then enables producers to present the sophisticated data and calculations in an easy-to-understand format illustrating the client's specific situation.

"Unlike a charitable remainder trust, a client creating charitable lead trust has the benefit of seeing his or her charitable gifts at work during his or her lifetime," Mr. Zipse said. "With life insurance, they also have the added benefit of knowing that they are taking care of their family in the future as well. For the right client, it's a tool that warrants a closer look."

Boston-based John Hancock is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corp., a Canadian-based financial services group.

Source: John Hancock

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