Examine the different types of annuities and see if an annuity is the right fit for your retirement portfolio.
Is your retirement account acting like a YoYo? With the nightly news comes the report on the day’s happenings in our national stock markets. Every day brings what has happened to America’s investments. The movement in the market affects more than 50% of America’s retirement funds. Some days it increases, and some days it decreases. [...]
It is very common when individuals explore retirement plan alternatives that they focus on the monthly payments they will receive when they start taking lifetime income. There are certain circumstances where that criteria can work against what the plan holder needs. Recently a client explored what products would give him the highest monthly income. [...]
I believe in full transparency when presenting solutions to my clients for their goals and needs. There is no one perfect product for everyone, and so we need to do a complete fact-finder to find the right product to satisfy the situation. Sometimes there is no solution that I can offer, and I will state [...]
What matters most? Every day I speak with clients, and one of the hardest things I must convince them of is that it's no longer about chasing the highest interest rates. You see, most of my clients are retired or very near retirement. They are in the so-called "fragile decade," which is the five years [...]
I frequently ask clients during our first conversation, “what is the average return of the market?” Usually, without fail, they answer, “7% - 8%.” My next question is, “when has it averaged that return?” Usually, without fail, they answer, “historically,” or something to that nature. My response to this answer is, “do you think it’s [...]
I am a “visual” type thinking person. So, I was thinking of ways to further describe the FIA, knowing that it's a different language. I have spoken this language for the better part of 18 years; realizing that sometimes in the communication of a different language, there is a loss of meaning and or interpretation. [...]
The lingering question about the success of variable annuities as a sales vehicle is on the surface difficult to understand. By examining it closely and using the “new car” concept of selling, the focus is on the allure, the new paint, the transformation of us as drivers being behind the wheel and on it goes.
Annuities and Asset Protection: What you need to know! Joe Richmond (not his real name) followed every bit of advice his financial planner gave him. He paid himself first and accumulated a very nice emergency fund. He maxed out his employer-matched qualified plan, invested in income-producing assets, looked for any tax savings, and started a [...]
Turn on the radio, pick up the newspaper, google the word “Annuity” and sit back and think to yourself, what in the world is going on here? Huge firms and stockbrokers all build fear and loathing around this ominous word “Annuity.” Have you ever thought about the definition of the word Annuity? What is it exactly? [...]
One of the biggest concerns my prospective clients have when researching annuities is accessibility. As big as a myth that this is, the reality is, annuities have more liquidity features than any other considerable “safe” investments. The only investment with more liquidity in a “safe money” investment is cash just sitting in a bank [...]
