Anybody out there work for New York Life?

[Agent]

As a former agent of New York Life I would say that is a great company and very glad that I started out there. In fact at times wish that I would have continued on there.

Their training program NYLICU is good, I wouldn’t say super, however definitely a standard in the industry. They also start you in the LUTCF (at least at the office I was at) program and you will be a LUTCF (Life Underwriting Training Counsel Fellow from the American College) before you TAS contract is up in 3 years. In addition they will pay for CLU, CHFC, CFP and MFS certifications/degrees to advance your education. Hands down, you will know more about life insurance in 6 months at NYL then does the vast majority of agents/financial pro’s in the industry.

How many hours do you need to work? A full week! You don’t need to be working 80 hours a week but a full 40 will guarantee your success anywhere. Focus on the 10 apps a month track they will encourage you on and you will be busy!

NYL is captive. They are a career and captive agency. One could argue that your contract becomes career after your TAS status because you then can broker other companies. However, since NYL takes a cut from any business you write with other companies the contract is and does remain a captive/career contract for life.

Other agents can as NHB_MMA have said, come in and receive a contract as a professional agent. However, they have the option of coming in with a TEA contract or a PEA contract…the TEA contract provides a training allowance for the agent (Training allowance Experienced Agent) whereas PEA contract (Professional Experienced Agent) does not. Both grant you a NYL contract pension, health benefits for the family with a production minimum to keep the contract etc…It is not for those who just wish to add NYL to there mix. Anyone can get a broker contract with NYL 80% FYC with decent renewals. The broker contract obviously just like any other broker non-career/captive contracts does not have all the benefits the opposite contracts do.

As far as compensation goes, it matches/exceeds indys…just in the middle and back end rather then in the front. There are other forms of remuneration you will get with NYL, such as monthly expense reimbursement you can spend on anything you want. When you add on the renewals, expense allowance pension bonuses etc… they are identical to an indys contract with any company. In many cases it surpasses the 110+% FYC contracts out there in over all compensation. Insurance companies are smarter then agents and they are not going to pay a broker exceedingly more then their agency force and vice-versa. Front-end heaped commissions fool many. I know NYL agents that have been there for 15+ years…compare them to an independent broker agent with virtual identical polices written, placed, with matching lapse ratio and the NYL agent doing the same work is making more with ALL of his/her NYLIC income included.

All in all, great company! Just make sure you can trust you partner and always write 10 apps a month!

Regards,
Nak4Life

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Fantastic training + poor work ethic = failure
Bad training + poor work ethic = failure

Bad training + good work ethic = eventual success
Fantastic training + good work ethick = immediate success

 

[MIBizInsurance]

Good detailed post Nak.

Any one looking for info. on NYL can and should be directed to your reply in the future.

 

[mmb98]

NYL is captive. They are a career and captive agency. One could argue that your contract becomes career after your TAS status because you then can broker other companies. However, since NYL takes a cut from any business you write with other companies the contract is and does remain a captive/career contract for life.

Nak4Life - great post. I do have to say that NYL doesn't take a cut from any business you write with other companies. They encourage you to write through BISYS so you can get "council credits" for the business you write (they offer mainly life). I don't use BISYS for most of my life cases outside NYL because of the lower commission structure. I am free to use any carrier or agency I would like. I use other carriers for LTCi, Life, Disability and Health.

 

[Agent]

Perhaps the “cut” comes out only if you are a TEA agent and not if you were TAS but now a senior agent? I know of agents that were getting cuts off their policies, however they were of the TEA category.

If you can write anyone else after your TAS/TEA status, then to me that sounds like it does in fact become a career contract. Great deal if you ask me and one more reason for agents to give a hard look at NYL if they are considering the company initially, considering leaving to go indy or looking to join as a experienced agent.

Nak4Life

 

[NHB_MMA]

NHB, how has the insurance biz been treating you?

Remember reading your threads when you were first thinking of making the move. Hope all is well.

Mediocre to be honest. Somedays I feel on top of the world and somedays I'm ready to walk out the door.

 

[Winter_123]

As a former agent of New York Life I would say that is a great company and very glad that I started out there. In fact at times wish that I would have continued on there.


What are New York Life's true competitive strengths? I know that they have name recognition and all of that. But putting the securities part of the business aside and just focusinng on the fixed side, what are the selling points when actually comparing their products with other insurance companies. This is not a loaded question, I am simply asking because I don't know. I don't see their products come up on quote search engines - at least I can't recall that and do not know what they have that is competitive for the client, or is it that they are just a better place for agents to work? What do they have going for them at a product level that say Genworth, Prudential, West Coast, Mutual of Omaha etc do not have?

Winter

 

[Agent]

As a former agent of New York Life I would say that is a great company and very glad that I started out there. In fact at times wish that I would have continued on there.


What are New York Life's true competitive strengths? I know that they have name recognition and all of that. But putting the securities part of the business aside and just focusinng on the fixed side, what are the selling points when actually comparing their products with other insurance companies. This is not a loaded question, I am simply asking because I don't know. I don't see their products come up on quote search engines - at least I can't recall that and do not know what they have that is competitive for the client, or is it that they are just a better place for agents to work? What do they have going for them at a product level that say Genworth, Prudential, West Coast, Mutual of Omaha etc do not have?

Winter

NYL permanent products are competitive as the rest, in terms of premium, cash value etc… When you buy their term, you are buying the right to convert to NYL permanent plans. Their term is not necessarily competitive but they are not a cheap term company, they never have been and never will be and yet they will be around for another 150 years. How many of the mortgage term or cheap term companies do think will last another 50 years let alone 150?

There are agents that sell the newest cheapest thing on the market from companies that I wouldn’t sell to my mother, and then there are the MDRT agents that sell themselves.

If you sell by price you will be replaced by price.

Shoppers are not clients they are customers. The first sale is not their last shopping experience with you. They will shop you again, whether you’re involved or not.

NYL, Guardian and companies such as that, teach agents to be more than a term convenience store. They teach them to be advisors.

There are actuarial problems as well with companies that sell nothing but cheap term. The lower the companies price the more of it they have to sell. This in turn, if sales forecast are not met, creates reserve problems and encourages risky loan holdings or other risky investment strategies of the particular company.

Therefore, the product level may be the first but not the last thing to consider when choosing a product.

Nak4Life

 

[Winter_123]

There are agents that sell the newest cheapest thing on the market from companies that I wouldn’t sell to my mother, and then there are the MDRT agents that sell themselves.

If you sell by price you will be replaced by price.

Shoppers are not clients they are customers. The first sale is not their last shopping experience with you. They will shop you again, whether you’re involved or not.

NYL, Guardian and companies such as that, teach agents to be more than a term convenience store. They teach them to be advisors.

There are actuarial problems as well with companies that sell nothing but cheap term. The lower the companies price the more of it they have to sell. This in turn, if sales forecast are not met, creates reserve problems and encourages risky loan holdings or other risky investment strategies of the particular company.

==============================================

Okay, well I was asking about products and we sort of went into a little spin zone here. Are you saying that a Genworth term or West Coast converted over to a permanent policy is not competitive with New York Life. If that is true, I am just trying to get some information. It sounds like the response is that New York Life is not competitive or have any differentiating products but that they come with the superior advice of a New York Life trained agent. If that is the explanation I am okay with it. Just trying to understand.

I do think that the actuarial rating explanation is smokey. The potential demand on the reserves is an important factor but this is why companies have financial ratings, and those ratings reflect an assessment of those factors. Some old guard companies like Mutual of Omaha, and apparently NYL, get a lot of mileage out of playing that old card about the client wanting to make sure that the company is around to make payments if needed. All of the major competitive companies are A-rated companies. When was the last time an A-rated company failed to pay a death benefit, and if the policy comes with guaranteed rates then the rates are set. In addition, states require companies to adjust their reserves as needed, and then there are re-insurance requirements as well. Some of it is like General Motors poo pooing cheap foreign imports for years and trading off of their solid name. It works a little but not as well as it used to.

Also, don't assume that an agent who gets the best quote for their client based on a full assessment of the clients needs is not building a relationship with the client and serving their larger interests. If New York Life trains its agents well, then that is good but that does not make them the only professionals in town. State Farm also touts their comprehensive approach to meeting their clients needs and their superior relationship building. While products attributes and price are not only the factors to be considered, they are important factors and I like to see what they are sometimes whether it be New York Life or State Farm.

Winter

 

[Sam]

When was the last time an A-rated company failed to pay a death benefit

Never ask a question that you don't know the answer to! I once asked that and Bob set me straight....Bob, you out there?