Yes. A Thrivent universal life policy can be sold in a life settlement, because the contract belongs to you and the buyer acquires it directly from you; the carrier does not have to consent to the sale. Thrivent’s part is administrative. When the transaction closes, it records the new owner and beneficiary and keeps servicing the contract as before.
Two facts shape this page. First, Thrivent is a fraternal benefit society rather than a stock insurer. It is member-owned, life coverage is generally issued as a membership certificate, and the organization traces to the early-2000s combination of Aid Association for Lutherans and Lutheran Brotherhood, with membership later opened beyond Lutherans. Confirm your contract’s title and servicing details on your latest statement (verify as of 2026). Second, universal life is the policy type the secondary market buys most often, and the reason is structural.
Universal life is unbundled. You pay into an account value, the carrier deducts monthly charges from it, and the largest of those charges rises with your age. When the rising charge outruns the account value, the policy demands more money or lapses. That is the moment most owners start looking for options. Pine Lake Life Solutions is not affiliated with Thrivent.
In This Article
Why Universal Life Is the Most-Settled Policy Type
Whole life bundles everything into one level premium the carrier guarantees. Universal life takes the pieces apart. Your payments go into an account value, interest is credited to it, and each month the insurer subtracts a cost-of-insurance charge plus expense and rider charges. Those cost-of-insurance rates are based on age, so they climb every year, gently at first and then steeply once the insured passes into their seventies and eighties.
Policies sold in the 1980s and 1990s were often illustrated at the high interest rates of the era. Credited rates fell for decades afterward. The account value grew slower than projected while the internal charges kept climbing on schedule, and many of these contracts now need several times the original planned premium to reach maturity.
That combination, a policy the owner can no longer justify funding but that still carries a substantial death benefit, is exactly what a settlement buyer looks for. It is why universal life dominates the secondary market, and why owners of these certificates are often surprised by what a review turns up.
The In-Force Illustration Is the Key Document
If you take one thing from this page, take this: request an in-force illustration. It is a projection the carrier runs on your actual contract as it stands today, and it answers the only question that matters, which is what it will cost to keep this policy alive.
Ask for more than one version. A version at current charges and current credited rates. A version at guaranteed maximum charges and the guaranteed minimum interest rate, which is the worst case the contract permits. And a version showing the premium required to carry the policy to a specific age, such as 95 or 100. Some owners discover their policy lapses in six years at the premium they are paying now.
Alongside it, pull your most recent annual statement for the current account value, surrender value, any loan balance, and the year-to-date monthly deductions. Together these two documents are what a buyer prices from. Ordering them early prevents the most common delay in the process.
How a Fraternal Certificate Affects the Paperwork
Because Thrivent is a fraternal benefit society, your document may be titled a certificate, you may be identified as a member, and the contract may reference the society’s bylaws. None of that prevents a transfer of ownership. It does mean you should confirm two specifics with the service line before closing: which change-of-ownership form applies to your certificate, and whether any membership-linked provisions operate differently once a non-member owns the contract.
Get those answers in writing and verify them directly rather than relying on general guidance, since form requirements and internal procedures change. Beyond that, the mechanics are ordinary. The owner’s name on the assignment must match the contract exactly. Trust-owned certificates need current trust documents. The carrier’s written acknowledgment of the recorded ownership change is the event that releases your money from independent escrow.
| Illustration Version to Request | What It Assumes | What It Tells You |
|---|---|---|
| Current charges, current rates | Today’s cost of insurance and credited rate | Realistic near-term funding need |
| Guaranteed maximum charges, minimum rate | The worst case the contract allows | Your true downside exposure |
| Premium to carry to age 95 or 100 | Policy stays in force to maturity | Lifetime cost of keeping the policy |
| Minimum premium to avoid lapse | Bare-minimum funding | How soon the policy fails as-is |
| Reduced face amount scenario | Smaller death benefit | Whether shrinking coverage makes it affordable |
What Drives the Size of an Offer
A buyer is funding future premiums in exchange for a future death benefit, so the offer is built from three inputs. The death benefit, which is what the buyer eventually collects. The projected premium stream, which is what the buyer must pay in the meantime. And a life expectancy estimate, which sets how long that stream runs.
Universal life with lean cash value and a low no-lapse cost can look expensive to you and attractive to a buyer at the same time, because the buyer has a different cost of capital and a portfolio rather than a single policy. Federal research (GAO-10-775) found sellers typically received roughly 10 to 35 percent of face value, on the order of four to eight times cash surrender value. Since many older universal life certificates have very little surrender value left, the comparison can be stark.
Offers weaken when the death benefit is small, when a loan has drained the contract, or when projected funding costs swallow the benefit. See settlement versus surrender and how cash surrender value works.
Options Short of Selling
Selling is one exit among several, and an honest review names them all. You can reduce the face amount, which cuts the monthly cost of insurance and can make the policy sustainable at a premium you can afford. You can stop paying and let accumulated account value carry the policy for a while, though on an older universal life contract that clock is usually short. You can surrender for whatever cash value remains, which on many aged certificates is disappointing.
You can also look at a partial sale. Some transactions are structured so premiums end while a portion of the death benefit is retained for your beneficiaries. Our page on how the policy options work explains those structures.
What you should not do is quietly stop paying and let the policy lapse without checking its market value first. A lapsed policy is worth nothing to anyone. A review costs nothing and takes days.
Who Qualifies
The recognizable profile: an insured around 65 or older, or younger with significant health changes since the policy was issued; a death benefit of $100,000 or more; a contract in force past its contestability period; and premiums that are meaningful relative to the benefit but not absurd.
Health is the input people underestimate. Underwriting at issue reflected who you were then. A settlement is priced on who you are now, and a shortened life expectancy increases the contract’s value to a buyer. That is uncomfortable to say plainly, but it is how the market works, and it is why a policy that felt like a sunk cost can turn out to be a real asset.
Our page on what policies qualify for a life settlement lays out the full screen. If you also hold Thrivent variable or indexed coverage, see the guides for a Thrivent variable universal life policy and a Thrivent indexed universal life policy.
Process, Timeline and Protections
Expect roughly 60 to 120 days from application to funded payment. The sequence: free review from the cover page, then documentation including the in-force illustration and medical records, then a life expectancy estimate, then offers, then contracts and escrow, then the ownership change and funding.
Three protections to insist on. Get the gross offer and your net proceeds after every fee and commission, itemized in writing. Use an independent escrow agent so your funds are never dependent on a buyer’s goodwill. And know your state’s rescission window, the period after funding in which you can unwind the sale by returning the money.
To start, send the certificate cover page for a free policy review, or call (305) 209-7183. This page is education, not legal, tax or investment advice; talk to your own advisors before deciding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my universal life premium keep going up?
Universal life deducts a monthly cost-of-insurance charge from your account value, and that charge is based on age, so it rises every year. If credited interest does not keep pace, the account value erodes and the carrier asks for more premium to prevent a lapse. An in-force illustration shows exactly how that curve looks on your contract.
Does Thrivent have to approve the sale?
No. The buyer purchases the contract from you, and carrier consent is not part of that decision. Thrivent records the change of ownership and beneficiary once the required forms are filed and accepted, and that acknowledgment normally triggers release of your funds from escrow.
Is a Thrivent certificate different from a regular policy?
Thrivent is a fraternal benefit society, so life coverage is generally issued as a membership certificate to members rather than as an ordinary policy. The certificate still names a face amount, premium and beneficiary and can be assigned. Ask the service line which change-of-ownership form applies to your certificate and whether any membership provisions change when a non-member owns it.
What is Thrivent’s history?
Thrivent is a member-owned fraternal benefit society with Lutheran roots, formed when Aid Association for Lutherans and Lutheran Brotherhood combined in the early 2000s; membership was later broadened beyond Lutherans. Verify current corporate structure, ratings and service contacts directly with Thrivent as of 2026.
How much can I expect from a life settlement?
Federal research on the market (GAO-10-775) found sellers typically received about 10 to 35 percent of face value, roughly four to eight times cash surrender value. Older universal life often has very little surrender value left, so the multiple can look large. Your offer depends on the death benefit, projected premiums and a life expectancy estimate.
Can I sell only part of the policy?
Some transactions are structured with a retained death benefit, meaning premiums end and your beneficiaries keep a portion of the coverage. Not every buyer offers this and not every policy supports it. Ask about it early if keeping some coverage for family matters to you.
What if I just stop paying premiums?
On an older universal life certificate the accumulated account value usually carries the policy only briefly before it lapses, and a lapsed policy is worth nothing to anyone. If you are considering walking away, get a free review first. It costs nothing and takes days, not months.
What do I send to begin?
The policy or certificate cover page, which shows the issuing organization, contract number, face amount and issue date. That is enough for a free, no-obligation review. If it looks like a candidate, the next request is an in-force illustration from the carrier.
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Related Reading
- Life Settlement Vs Surrender
- Cash Surrender Value Life Insurance
- What Policies Qualify For Life Settlement
- How It Works Policy Options
- Sell My Thrivent Variable Universal Policy
- Sell My Thrivent Indexed Universal Policy
Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase life insurance policies and does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice. Information provided is for educational purposes only. Eligibility for any option, including life settlements, is not guaranteed and depends on individual circumstances, policy terms, underwriting, and market conditions. Consult independent legal, tax, or financial professionals before making decisions regarding a life insurance policy.