I'm currently 28 and i'm looking at getting a long term (15-20 years) endowment plan. Is manulife readybuilder or pruwealth better?

Better To invest in ETFs

Hi anon,

Assuming that you have decided that a whole life endowment is the type of plan you want (this is based on you specifying readybuilder and pruwealth, which are whole life type of endowments), then you should look at the following factors (which are also non-exhaustive)

• Guaranteed rate of return: This is the minimum return you will get. If things don't bode well for the par funds (which can happen), you are still at least guaranteed this amount

• Projected rate of return: Sure, some companies may have a track record of crediting based on 4.75% p.a. returns but this does not mean you get 4.75% p.a. on your policy. Two companies crediting based on 4.75% p.a. may lead to one company having an effective return of 4% vs another with an effective return of 3%. And that is significant.

• Break even point: Just in case you really need to take money out sooner, when would the policy break even?

My personal opinion is, if you are aware of when you need the money, and it is within the 15 to 20 year time frame you specified, you might want to consider a fixed term endowment as the guaranteed returns will be better compared to a whole life endowment.