Who is the highest-paid insurance agent? (2024)

FAQs

Who is the highest paid insurance agent? ›

Gideon du Plessis failed in the 10th standard and never went to college. He is today the highest earning insurance agent in the world, with annual commissions amounting to Rs 7 crore (Rs 70 million) plus. A record he has maintained over the last 12-14 years, selling 700 policies yearly.

Life insurance agent salary summary.

The average life insurance agent salary ranges between $39,000 and $99,000 in the US. Life insurance agents' hourly rates in the US typically range between $18 and $47 an hour.

Is It Possible To Become A Millionaire Selling Insurance? A big yes. But like any other job, it takes time to be good at what you do and attain such income levels. Top agents earn anywhere between $100,000 to one million dollars.

While ZipRecruiter is seeing salaries as high as $124,480 and as low as $18,672, the majority of Life Insurance Agent salaries currently range between $57,600 (25th percentile) to $98,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $106,327 annually in California.

It is not easy to make a living in insurance, but it is not as hard as you might think. As with any type of sales, becoming an insurance agent can be one of the best paying hard jobs or a terrible paying easy job. Dedicated agents will become successful at insurance sales, just like at any other job.

Many life insurance agents receive sales commissions for the products or services they sell. Agents will receive a large upfront commission based on the cost of the first year's policy premium. The upfront commission can be a substantial percentage of the first year's policy cost.

The life insurance industry is one of the most profitable industries in the world. Every year, insurers report billions in profits on their corporate tax returns.

Difficult Sales Process

Even when pitching to the most-qualified prospect, do not assume you have an easy sell. Life insurance is a very difficult product to sell. Simply getting your prospect to acknowledge and discuss the fact they are going to die is a hard first step.

Actually, hard-working insurance agents regularly earn over $100,000 in their first year. Life insurance agents enjoy a lucrative career, but it does involve a constant hustle, networking, and sales in evenings and on weekends and general hard work. And there can be a lot of rejection before each sale.

Can you make a million dollars a year selling life insurance? ›

So now, if you close just 4 sales per week for $5,000 each. Then you will earn $1,000,000. Yes, it is that simple to make a million dollars selling life insurance! But, only if you will take the time to follow our Trusted Advisor Success Program™…

Math. Because insurance relies on many financial principles, it's essential for insurance agents to possess competency with numbers. The ability to make error-free calculations and analyze numerical data about insurance trends can help agents perform their work more effectively.

Taking these factors into consideration, most insurance agency owners operate with an average profit margin between 2 percent and 10 percent. Agency owners are advised to consult with an accountant or tax advisor when trying to structure your specific agency.

The health insurance industry continued its tremendous growth trend as it experienced a significant increase in net earnings to $31 billion and an increase in the profit margin to 3.8% in 2020 compared to net earnings of $22 billion and a profit margin of 3% in 2019.

If you're wondering what types of insurance are the most profitable, life insurance is a good pick. Life insurance offers some of the highest commissions in the business. Health insurance products offer around 7 - 22% in commissions. Auto insurance yields agents roughly 10% to 15% in commissions.

In fact, many agents new to insurance are fearful, knowing they face a high risk of failure. How many agents quit selling insurance? There isn't an exact number. But we figure somewhere between 90% and 95% of agents quit in their first 12 months of receiving their license.

The primary way that an insurance broker makes money is from commissions and fees earned on sold policies. These commissions are typically a percentage of the policy's total annual premium. An insurance premium is the amount of money that an individual or business pays for an insurance policy.

The median annual wage for insurance sales agents was $49,840 as of May 2021. The lowest 10% of earners in the industry made less than $29,970, and the highest 10% earned more than $126,510.

Insurance agents and insurance brokers can both help you buy an insurance policy. But insurance agents represent the insurance provider that employs them and help sell policies from that single provider. Insurance brokers represent the consumers who use them and can help them shop for policies from multiple providers.

Why do most insurance agents quit? ›

The most commonly cited reason insurance agents fail is that they fail to listen to their customers and take the time to find the best product to suit their needs. Agents who bring the right solutions to customers build trust, and that helps them build a book of loyal customers.

I really enjoy helping people, and working in this field gives me the opportunity to do that in many ways. Helping clients in some of the most difficult times in their lives, dealing with tragedies, loss of homes, or automobiles is the hardest thing to see, but is the most rewarding part of my job.

Not all life insurance payouts are created equal, and may depend on several factors covered below. On average, however, a typical life insurance payout in the U.S. is about $168,000.

99% of all term policies never pay out a claim. This is due to most people letting their policies lapse.

Selling life insurance as an investment is a popular way to make money. You can sell whole life insurance, universal life insurance, or term life insurance. These are called life settlements. Whole life insurance policies have a cash value that increases over time.

One of the biggest challenges for insurance sales agents is understanding client needs. Your clients will come from all types of backgrounds and will have differentiated financial situations, which means they have unique concerns and needs.

Becoming an insurance agent can be a great side hustle for those looking to earn extra income while helping others and growing personally. With a bit of training and networking, you can start building your client base and earning commissions in no time.

Typically, a life insurance agent receives anywhere from 30% to 90% of the amount paid for a policy (also known as the premium) by the client in the first year. In later years, the agent may receive anywhere from 3% to 10% of each year's premium, also known as "renewals" or "trailing commissions."

How much does a licensed insurance agent make in Texas? ›

The average salary for a licensed insurance agent in Texas is $35,000 per year.

There are 881,500 licensed agencies and brokers working in the US. 2021 totals show 911,400 life and health insurance agents and 628,600 property/casualty insurance agents. On average, 62.1% of first-time insurance exam takers pass the test. Insurance agents make on average $51,936 per year.

Wealthy individuals with a net worth over $1 million can use life insurance as income replacement, an investment vehicle, or protection against estate taxes.

On average, you can expect to receive 20% of the policy's face value when you sell it, according to the Life Insurance Settlement Association (LISA). That means a $100,000 life insurance policy might sell for $20,000. However, this is only an average.

This amount of money can be life-changing, and unfortunately, if you are looking to sell it for a cash value, you won't be able to. Along with an age requirement of 65, the face value of the policy needs to be at least $100,000 to sell.

However, it is not an easy job. You can expect a high rate of customer rejection, stress, and attrition rate. Still, all good insurance agents share some of the following skills and knowledge, plus core qualities in one way or another.

Some of the best life insurance companies for wealth people include MassMutual, Prudential, and Pacific Life. These carriers provide life insurance policies with a high death benefit and will make sure that the process of receiving coverage is seamless and as easy as possible.

“90% of all millionaires become so through owning real estate.” This famous quote from Andrew Carnegie, one of the wealthiest entrepreneurs of all time, is just as relevant today as it was more than a century ago. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world have built their wealth through real estate.

Women far outnumber men in entry-level positions within the insurance industry. In fact, according to research by McKinsey & Company, women account for 66 percent of entry-level positions in the insurance industry versus 48 percent of entry-level jobs in the workforce overall, which is notable.

Why do so many insurance agents fail? ›

The most commonly cited reason insurance agents fail is that they fail to listen to their customers and take the time to find the best product to suit their needs. Agents who bring the right solutions to customers build trust, and that helps them build a book of loyal customers.

According to the Insurance Journal, the success rate for new insurance agents ranges between 30% and 50%. Within three years of entering the insurance industry, the success rate drops to 11%.

High-earners and wealthy people can use life insurance to pay estate taxes on a large inheritance. Cash value life insurance offers an alternative tax-deferred investment account if you've maxed out traditional accounts. Life insurance trusts can be used alongside permanent life insurance to maximize your assets.

Millionaires don't worry about FDIC insurance. Their money is held in their name and not the name of the custodial private bank. Other millionaires have safe deposit boxes full of cash denominated in many different currencies.

Real Estate Broker

A real estate broker is permitted under law to negotiate and organize real estate dealings. A career as a real estate broker is one of the highest paying and lucrative professions in the real estate industry. On average, experienced brokers take home a six-figure pay.

Choose the right career

And one crucial detail to note: Millionaire status doesn't equal a sky-high salary. “Only 31% averaged $100,000 a year over the course of their career,” the study found, “and one-third never made six figures in any single working year of their career.”

No matter how much their annual salary may be, most millionaires put their money where it will grow, usually in stocks, bonds, and other types of stable investments. Millionaires put their money into places where it will grow such as mutual funds, stocks and retirement accounts.