Expert guidance brings clarity to finances, insurance
Caroline Lobsinger
For many of us, when numbers come into play our brains shut down. It gets even worse when it comes to finances and insurance. You can almost see the eyes start glazing over as confusion and uncertainty get in the way of making a decision.
But it doesn't have to be that way.
North Idaho is blessed with a plethora of experts in each of those categories, ready, willing and able to offer you advice to meet your goals, buy that home, or retire on time and with enough on hand to make your post-retirement life exactly what you had in mind.
Hoping to buy a home? Financial experts can analyze your saving and investment goals and habits, then help you draft a plan to have you turning the key in the lock to watch into your new home for the first time.
Unsure of what kind of insurance you need, or how much? Insurance agents can help match the right coverage to protect what you need to haveprotected.
“I have assets and I have liabilities,” said Gary Chapman, an agent with Coeur d’Alene Insurance. “Some of those, I want to protect, if I can afford it. That’s basically what insurance is.”
Policies exist for virtually any asset or situation.
Agents have a unique blend of talents — part teacher, part counselor and part investigator — to work with clients to determine what their needs are and what coverage works best for them.
"You have to pry in a bit because you need to know what their health conditions are," licensed agent Bill Miles explained. "You need to know their doctors, their specialists, their medications.”
Insurance agents and financial experts can help you navigate the complexities of their respective industries. Easily translating what seems to be undecipherable to the unfamiliar.
Phyllis Towne, a 29-year veteran of the insurance industry said living in North Idaho presents its own set of potentially unique situations.
“We are in an incredibly difficult market right now with the wildfire risk exposure in the Northwest and post-COVID prices still rising on things like building materials and auto parts,” she said.
Despite these concerns, Towne is adamant that the personal security of having proper insurance coverage is something people may not understand but should explore regardless of their financial situation.
“The best time to get insurance is any time,” Towne said. “We can't predict price increases but the risk of being without insurance can cost in the hundreds of thousands for catastrophic losses.”
I like the idea of having experts at my fingertips, a quick call or email away, taking the worry and uncertainty away, and helping us make the best financial decisions — ensuring our dreams really can come true.
— Caroline Lobsinger, North Idaho Business Journal
