How To Protect Your Assets With Strategic Insurance Planning?
True Root Financial is a fee only financial advisor and financial planner based in San Francisco, CA. We serve clients across the globe.
You’ve got the income, the equity comp, the retirement accounts, and maybe a house with significant appreciation. Now it’s time to make sure it doesn’t all fall apart because of a health crisis, a lawsuit, or an unexpected disability.
This is where strategic insurance planning comes in.
If you are a tech professional interested in learning how we can help you claim your financial independence by investing wisely, minimizing taxes, and maximizing your equity compensation, please book a no-obligation call here.
From life insurance to disability coverage and long-term care, many high-income tech professionals are exposed to massive risks without even knowing it. Watch the video below where we break down the most overlooked part of your financial strategy: insurance planning.
Key Takeaways:
- Protect your full income, including equity, with the right coverage
- Disability and long-term care insurance matter more than you think
- Umbrella insurance guards against lawsuits
- Employer insurance is usually not enough.
If you want to keep what you’ve built safe for yourself and the people you care about, it’s time to look at insurance planning through a more intentional lens.
- Don’t rely solely on employer-provided insurance. It’s a starting point, not a full safety net
- Disability and long-term care coverage are critical but often overlooked
Why “Protection” Shouldn’t Be an Afterthought?
If wealth-building is the offense in your financial game plan, protection is your defense. And yet, protection strategies are often ignored until it’s too late.
We often see this: smart, capable professionals in their 30s, 40s, or 50s with impressive portfolios, but incomplete insurance coverage or outdated estate documents. Or no plan at all.
Let’s break it down. You don’t need to become an insurance expert or an estate attorney. However, you do need to know where the risks lie and what steps can be taken to close the gaps.
Protecting Your Income and Assets with the Right Insurance
Having insurance and having the right insurance are two different things. Here are the core areas to review.
1. Life Insurance: Not Just for Parents with Young Kids
Life insurance isn’t about betting against yourself. It’s about ensuring your loved ones can continue life without financial chaos if you’re no longer there to support them.
Many people in tech rely solely on their employer’s group life insurance, which typically covers one or two times their salary. That sounds okay until you realize:
- It often doesn’t include bonuses or equity
- It’s tied to your job; if you leave, it disappears
- It’s rarely enough to support a family long term
If you’re the financial cornerstone of your household, you likely need a private policy that reflects your actual responsibilities, not just your W-2.
2. Disability Insurance: The Coverage No One Talks About
This one’s underrated, yet essential.
What if an illness or injury prevents you from working? Especially in a high-cost city like San Francisco, your income supports a lot: housing, childcare, investments, and your future retirement.
And here’s what many miss: Employer disability plans often cover only a portion of your base salary, not equity or bonuses. So if equity makes up 40–60% of your compensation, you’re not nearly as protected as you think.
We had a client whose employer plan covered 40% of base pay, but once you added in all the equity they’d lose out on, the real coverage was closer to 25%. We helped them find a supplemental policy to fix the gap.
3. Long-Term Care Insurance: For You, and Your Family’s Sanity
In your 40s or 50s, long-term care might sound premature. But that’s exactly when it makes the most sense, before health issues arise and premiums become unaffordable.
Long-term care insurance can help cover the cost of:
- Assisted living
- Nursing homes
- In-home care
These services easily cost six figures per year. Without planning, they could drain your retirement savings or become a burden on your family.
4. Umbrella Insurance: Lawsuit Protection for Your Assets
Let’s say someone is injured at your home. Or you’re in a car accident that exceeds your auto insurance limits. If you’re sued, your brokerage account and home equity could be at risk.
Umbrella insurance provides an extra layer of liability protection, usually $1–5 million, for a relatively low annual premium.
It’s a small price to pay for significant peace of mind, especially if your net worth has grown in recent years.
Building Insurance Into a Holistic Financial Plan
Insurance isn’t just a product you buy; it’s a key part of your risk management strategy. Here’s how we help clients make sure their coverage works for them:
- Review current employer benefits and calculate the actual gaps
- Identify supplemental policies to protect your full compensation
- Coordinate insurance with estate planning (e.g., naming your trust as the beneficiary)
Ensure coverage stays up to date with life changes like promotions, marriage, home purchases, or children going to college
Real-World Example
A tech professional at a big tech company came to us thinking they were well protected. Their employer offered life and disability insurance, and they figured that was enough.
After a thorough review, we found:
- Their disability policy only covered 40% of base salary, and none of the RSUs
- Their life insurance was only $300k, despite having two kids and a $1.6M mortgage
- No long-term care or umbrella coverage at all
With a few key changes, they now have a plan that truly protects their income, family, and future.
Final Thought:
If you’ve reached a point where you’ve built significant wealth, now is the time to defend it. Insurance may not be glamorous, but when the unexpected happens, it’s the difference between scrambling and security.
Your Next Steps:
If you’re unsure whether your current coverage is enough or whether your employer benefits will hold up long term, let’s take a closer look together. Book a no obligation call below:
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