One of the benefits of Whole Life insurance is that some of portion of the money you pay for your premium contributes to the cash value. The cash value portion is guaranteed to grow, so if the stock market goes up or down, the cash value is insulated from these fluctuations. You can withdraw or borrow funds from your cash value for any reason, including to buy a home, cover education or health care expenses, or supplement your retirement income. When you borrow against your cash value, the money you withdraw isn’t taxed as income. The cash value growth in your policy is tax deferred, so you don’t have to worry about paying taxes on it every year. At death, the policy death benefit is income tax-free to your beneficiaries.