2023 Annual Report

Helping people design a better farewell, benefitting those they love.

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We have so much to be grateful for as we reflect on 2023 – another outstanding year for Homesteaders Life Company. We remain focused on strategic growth that enables us to go beyond merely keeping pace with the ever-changing business environment, but also positions us as a trusted and innovative partner for our customers well into the future. 

While we have a lot to celebrate when reviewing our financial results, we also know that the work we do at Homesteaders is about so much more.

We share our customers' passion for funeral service and see every day how the work we do together can build long-term security for businesses and meaningful connections in our communities. Thank you for joining us on this journey to help more people than ever plan a better farewell, benefitting those they love. 

Stephen M. Shaffer
President, CEO & Board Chair
 

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 Our Tools & Partnerships

With continued growth and expansion, Homesteaders’ offerings make sure you have the tools you need to deliver the very best experience for your client families. From enhanced aftercare and grief support resources to online funeral sales and our EnGauge customer relationship management (CRM) system, you’ll find tools that fit your needs. Download the full report to read about what our partners accomplished in 2023.  

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Elevia Text-Based Aftercare

In 2023, our award-winning text-based aftercare program cared for 9% of all families who experienced a loss in the United States.

 

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New Grief Resources

ForGrief.com features content and contributions from dozens of leading grief and bereavement professionals, all designed with a grieving person’s unique needs in mind.

 

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eFuneral

Through a custom online storefront that integrates with a funeral provider’s existing website, eFuneral helps funeral professionals reach consumers who want to plan online. 

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Online Claims

In 2023, we expanded access to our industry-leading online claims platform to include 28 additional states and more than a thousand new funeral homes.

 

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EnGauge

This Salesforce-powered CRM system centralizes a funeral home’s operations, ensuring their preneed agents always know the next step to follow up with families, nurture relationships and close more sales.

 

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P3 Casket Price Protection

With our exclusive partnership with Matthews Aurora™ Funeral Solutions, funeral providers can lock in wholesale costs of caskets and urns on qualifying Homesteaders-funded policies.

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Funeral Home Lending

Our Funeral Business Conventional Loan program, through The Bancorp, offers a financing solution designed specifically for funeral professionals who need access to capital to grow their businesses and reach more families.

 

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Expanded Product Offerings

We are now able to offer our full product suites to customers, agents and policy owners in Michigan and Virginia.

Our Service & Support 

Year after year, Homesteaders continues to evolve and innovate to create the best possible experience for our funeral home customers, agents and policy owners. In 2023, our team continued to deliver top-notch service by prioritizing accessibility to our staff, enhancing the customer experience, providing valuable insights and developing strong, personal relationships built on a foundation of trust.  

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Account Executive Support

We welcomed 333 new funeral home locations, wrote policies in 3,737 firms across 48 states and paid claims to 7,278 funeral homes in 2023.

Training and Development

Our training and development team offered several continuing education and development opportunities, meeting the need for relevant and timely training on topics that impact funeral homes’ success. 

Customer Service

Our customer service representatives answered nearly 172,000 calls last year while maintaining our near-perfect customer satisfaction rating.

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Our People & Philanthropy

Homesteaders' team members remain committed to helping our funeral home customers and agents serve more families than ever before. We continue to focus on engaging our employees with our purpose and values and maintain our positive work environment to foster employee satisfaction. Download the full report to read about exciting programs we sponsored in 2023.

Corporate Giving

We focus our giving on organizations that directly impact our central Iowa community as well as programs and resources in the funeral profession and adjacent end-of-life spaces. 

Volunteering

We encourage our employees to volunteer in their communities with organizations that are important to them and provide them with paid volunteer time off. 

Awards and Recognition

Homesteaders has been recognized as a Top Iowa Workplace for the ninth consecutive year. In addition, Homesteaders was one of 40 Iowa companies named as a Top U.S.A. Workplace. 

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Our Financial Strength

In the first quarter of 2023, Homesteaders announced a growth rate increase of an average 30 basis points for all new business. This move is evidence of our company’s strong financial foundation and underscores our commitment to providing reliable funding products that meet our funeral home customers’ needs. Homesteaders remains in a strong, stable financial position. We are equipped to fulfill our financial responsibilities and honor the promises we have made to our policy owners to safeguard their end-of-life funds. Download the full report to read more important financial details. 

Financials 

Homesteaders earned an A- (Excellent) rating from A.M. Best Company.*

We reported
$11.49 million
in income.

 

We reported
$3.86 billion
in total assets.

 


92%
of our income was redistributed to our funeral home customers, agents and policy owners.

 

 

Download the Report

Discover highlights from 2023 in our Annual Report of Company Performance. 

 

Homesteaders' 2023 Annual Report of Company Performance open to Steve Shaffer's letter laying on top of a marble surface.