I used to be part of WFG: so now that I have automatically discounted my opinion, bear in mind that I am no longer an agent and can provide you some "unbiased" advice.
I think the insurance we sold was very comptetitive, whether it was term or permanent.
I will say though, that the whole "invest your house`s equity into the market" approach is not something I`d recommend, but that comes with a caveat.
The caveat is, does your friend have a financial plan/roadmap? What is their level of financial literacy?
I ask, because most Canadians are unwilling to spend the time, effort, money, or have little inclination to do slightly more sophisticated investment strategies like, say, real estate. I also trade my own money; a la options (calls and puts) in the market, so I am definitely not your avg investing type.
Its really really easy to say that people should not invest in some sort of fund. Fair enough, but is your friend willing to take his education to the next level? Is he willing to, say, take that equity and buy a strong cash-flowing property in a fundamentally strong region? If not, he should look into funds, and if he has low risk tolerance or none, he can look at GIC`s or Seg funds (expensive MER`s; but they come with certain guarantees).
Ultimately, I couldn`t reconcile in my head about advising people the pros and cons of the stock market and funds in general, because of the frustration that (1) most of them want an easy, simple investment versus (2) them actually lowering the risk by learning to trade or buy real estate, (3) me using my teaching background to try an educate them and them not listening to me anyways. Plus, of course, I couldn`t recommend those more sophisticated types of strategies.
Bear in mind that the "conflict of interest" I`ve outlined above is NOT specific to WFG, but to most planning firms in general. Not many planners - even those that are so-called "unbiased" and will work for a flat fee - have enough knowledge to properly educate their clients. Just read through the magazine "MoneySense" and you`ll get a feel for the anti-real estate bias most planners have. Unfortunate.
And part of the reason I went back to teaching; so I could work for `free` volunteering to help educate kids about financial literacy. That there isn`t more in the curriculum, money concepts, is a shameful, in my opinion. But recent experiences at Teacher`s Convention have given me hope (more and more organizations are reaching out to kids and the public in general).
Then there is the netowrk marketing aspect of WFG which I am fine with; some people aren`t but it is a legitimate business model, and in WFG`s case, since their in financial services and not just selling juice or a diet program, they are HEAVILY regulated. The protocols to submit business to compliance is unbelievable in terms of paperwork, but that`s as it should be, to protect the client. Yes, people will bug their friends and family, but in many cases, those people needed some seriosu help, as did I (and still do).
Overall, if you don`t like WFG`s model then I say feel free to tell your friend about your bad taste or gut feeling and let him make up his mind.
Questions?
Smitty