Annuities Archives - Page 13 of 16 - Jerry Golden on Retirement

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

New fiduciary rules will create a better-educated investor

May 3, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity 1 Comment Tags: Annuities, Guaranteed Income, retirement income, Social Security

To make money, one must constantly evaluate the state of the economy. It is always changing and when you adapt, you can create advantages for yourself. The latest change in the financial advising industry will benefit you as a consumer, but you will have to take more responsibility for educating yourself.

Instead of depending on an advisor to sell one product or another, consumers will investigate different products, make their decisions, and then rely on their financial counselor to help manage their money after that, perhaps with guidance on the investment markets, tax strategies and similar information.

The cost of services will go down because consumers will be doing more of the work. And confidence in the integrity of the service will increase because consumers will be better-educated and brokers won’t be allowed to advocate only for products on which they make a commission. More

Three tips that will lower your tax rate

April 26, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Social Security 2 Comments Tags: Annuities, retirement income, Social Security

Now is a good time, while tax season is fresh in your mind, to prepare for next year and to make plans to pay as little tax as possible. Here are two goals for everyone:

Eliminate or reduce taxes on income you’re not spending.
Minimize taxes on income you are spending.

That income could be from Social Security, income annuities or from interest, dividends and capital gains. It doesn’t matter whether you’re planning for retirement or in retirement, minimizing your tax bill is a worthy objective. More