Riscario

Life insurance can be used to pay off your mortgage upon death. There is an important caveat: insurance from a lender (typically a bank) is designed to protect the creditor (the lender) rather than the borrower (you). You can avoid the problems by buying insurance on your own. This is explained in the links below.

Links

• The pitfalls of mortgage life insurance (Riscario Insider blog, Jul 2011)
• Mortgage insurance not always a sure thing (CBC Marketplace video, Feb 2008)
• Mortgage insurance vs life insurance (Canadian Capitalist, April 2009)
• Perils of a mortgage life policy (Toronto Star, April 2007) + addendum (Ellen Roseman)
• Don't buy insurance from banks (Ellen Roseman, April 2009)
• Post-claims underwriting (Money Smart blog)
• Why am I denied insurance coverage? (Thicken My Wallet, May 2009)
• Why I won’t sell mortgage insurance (Dave The Mortgage Planner)