Annuity Archives - Page 20 of 25 - Jerry Golden on Retirement

Experts on income annuities: Look at the benefits

June 8, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Social Security 2 Comments Tags: Annuities, Baby Boomers, retirement income, Social Security

There is confusion on the internet, and even in the financial industry, about the value of annuities. Some of the dissonance occurs because there are several types of annuities and it can be confusing to decide how some of them might apply to an individual’s retirement situation.

But if we concentrate on income annuities, either immediate or deferred, we will see that more institutions – and smart people – are talking about their benefits.

They are beneficial to people who have saved a decent amount for retirement and are trying to figure out how to create guaranteed income for life, as opposed to hoping their retirement savings, invested in stocks and bonds, last as long as they do. More

Build a retirement plan with the right recipe – for you

June 1, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity Tags: Annuities, Baby Boomers, retirement income

While you research annuities on the internet as part of your investigation of retirement options, you will see a long list of ads and columns from financial advisors warning you about the pitfalls of investing in a product that provides guaranteed income for life.

The writers will discuss taxes, the complexity of annuities, the supposed difficulty of transferring money to heirs, and the threat of high fees.

They imagine retirees as gluttonous consumers who gorge themselves on a feast of annuities to the exclusion of all other options – and who woozily regret their decisions the morning after. More

Plan backward for a forward-thinking retirement

May 24, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Social Security 1 Comment Tags: Annuities, Guaranteed Income, retirement income, Social Security

Event planners will tell you that when you make preparations for something huge down the road – a ribbon cutting, a wedding, a visit from the president – you start by scheduling backward from the big day. You will get a handle on when to send the invitations, for instance, when to call the rental company, and which bills will have to be paid by when.

The list includes an important deadline: When you have to turn up the dial from calm preparation to single-minded obsession.

Although the timeline is longer, you can do the same with retirement. The goal is always the same with any planning objective: Attend to the details beforehand so you can enjoy the event. More

Annuities: Good vs. Bad or Just Misunderstood?

May 19, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity Tags: Annuities, retirement income

Let’s face it: Annuities have an image problem.

People talk about “good” vs. “bad” annuities. They read marketing materials from financial advisors who “hate” annuities. And some of the problem is with the industry itself. It hasn’t done a good job of explaining how annuities can supply guaranteed income for life.

There is no denying, though, that income annuities are the only commercially available financial product that can provide pension-like income throughout your retirement. More

To find your magic retirement number, plan beyond the average

May 10, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity 7 Comments Tags: Annuities, Dependable spendable income, Guaranteed Income, retirement income

It is fashionable in the community of retirement advice-givers to talk about your “magic number” for retirement. That’s the amount of money you should accumulate by the time you retire so that savings last the rest of your life, or some fixed period like your life expectancy.

The magic number is based on your achieving average results over the long term. And perhaps that will work out. You might not live longer than average. The stock market in which your savings are invested might hit the average return of the past several decades.

Or maybe it won’t work. It is disconcerting to plan for “average” when you realize how average might work to your disadvantage.

Take this example: A small pond could average three feet in depth. You might plan to walk from one side to the other. But start at the sandy beach where you enter the water, where the depth averages just a few inches as you take several steps toward the center of the pond. In fact, More