, and as a vehicle to shield their wealth and pass on tax-free money to their heirs.
On top of that, whole life insurance companies do promise dividends. These dividends are not guaranteed, however, so I wouldn't suggest factoring them into your long-term plan. I would go further to say that life insurance should never be treated as an investment, and that's true regardless of the "yield" your life insurance salesman promises. If you have a 401 account or any other type of tax-deferred retirement account, then you'll be much better off pursuing tax-free growth of your money there.
As I mentioned before, he is currently paying $164 per month for a whole life policy worth $200,000. If he paid for this policy for the next 30 years until he is 58, he would fork over $59,040 in premiums for what amounts to a $200,000 death benefit and a cash value account he can borrow against.