Open Enrollment 2026: How to Choose Dental, Vision, Life and Disability (Plus: When to Refinance a Home)

16 snips

Nov 6, 2025

Join Holden Lewis, a NerdWallet mortgage expert, and April Brasher from SHRM in a lively discussion about essential choices for open enrollment in 2026. They delve into how to confidently select dental, vision, life, and disability insurance. Learn the ins and outs of refinancing your mortgage, including when it's beneficial and what calculations to use. Plus, discover key coverages to consider and how to avoid being over-insured by evaluating your financial needs before enrollment deadlines.

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ADVICE

Run The Refi Numbers First

Run the numbers through a mortgage refinance calculator before deciding to refinance.
Target at least a 0.5% to 0.75% rate cut and consider closing costs and your break-even time.

ADVICE

Compare Fees And Break-Even

Only refinance if you plan to keep the house long enough to recoup fees.
Calculate the break-even period: fees (2–6% of loan) divided by monthly savings.

INSIGHT

Refinance To Remove FHA MIP

Refinancing can remove FHA mortgage insurance when you switch to a conventional loan.
That alone can justify a refi if you have over 20% equity.

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Learn how to pick dental, vision, life, and disability coverage with confidence, and when refinancing a home can actually save you money.

Is now a good time to refinance your mortgage? Which open enrollment benefits are worth it this year? Hosts Sean Pyles and Elizabeth Ayoola talk to an expert about the ins and outs of open enrollment in 2026. But first, news Nerd Anna Helhoski joins them to share her conversation with NerdWallet mortgage writer Holden Lewis about falling mortgage rates and what they mean for buyers, sellers, and homeowners. They begin with a discussion of refinancing and today’s housing market, with tips and tricks on using a refinance calculator, how much of a rate cut to target, weighing closing costs and the break-even timeline, and other smart reasons to refi.

Then, benefits expert April Brasher, knowledge advisor at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), joins Sean and Elizabeth to discuss open enrollment choices beyond health insurance. They discuss what dental and vision plans usually cover and what they don’t, how and when to add to group life insurance provided by some workplaces, and how disability insurance works. They also discuss when accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D), hospital indemnity, and critical illness policies can make sense, how to avoid being over-insured, and why taking a quick personal and financial inventory before enrollment deadlines helps you choose only what you need.

Want us to review your budget? Fill out this form — completely anonymously if you want — and we might feature your budget in a future segment! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK53yAufsc4v5UpghhVfxtk2MoyooHzlSIRBnRxUPl3hKBig/viewform?usp=header

In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: mortgage rates, refinance mortgage, refinance break-even, FHA mortgage insurance, remove FHA MIP, conventional vs FHA loan, housing market outlook, best time to buy a house, home buying season, mortgage closing costs, homeowners insurance shopping, lower mortgage payment, Fed rate cuts, housing inventory, open enrollment, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance through employer, supplemental life insurance, beneficiary designation, evidence of insurability, AD&D insurance, disability insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, own occupation vs any occupation, hospital indemnity insurance, critical illness insurance, high deductible health plan, and limited purpose FSA.

To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email podcast@nerdwallet.com.

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