Why should I consider an annuity for retirement?
An annuity can provide both guaranteed income and principal protection for your retirement funds while in retirement or saving for retirement. Annuities may provide additional bonuses to your account, provide lifetime benefits, and generally manage market risk very efficiently. No other financial can do this. A pension for example is a form of an annuity.
There are different types of annuities and it is imperative to pick the right kind of annuity that meets your needs. Remember, the financial guarantees an annuity offers are the sole responsibility of the issuing insurance company.


What is an income annuity?
You sign a contract and write a lump-sum check (or transfer monies from another institution) to an insurance company. The insurer invests the money and guarantees to pay you a predetermined fixed dollar amount (on a recurring basis) for the rest of your life. You do not receive your lump-sum back. You receive the fixed dollar amount (income stream) for the balance of your life. A pension is an income annuity. You receive monthly payments for the balance of your life but you never have access to the principal amount.


What is a deferred annuity?
You sign a contract and write a lump-sum check (or transfer monies from another institution) to an insurance company. The insurer invests the money for you. Your money goes to work for you either through a fixed interest account or other various index allocations. Then, as time goes by, you can either convert your annuity contract to an income stream or surrender the policy for its contract value. Your annuity generally grows tax-deferred, the principal is generally guaranteed depending on your contract provisions, and can provide a fixed income stream if you so desire.


Are annuities expensive?
They can be if you don’t choice the right annuity. If you pick the right annuity you may have no charges or a very small annual charge with it. Typically, a fee may be associated with a rider or an enhanced benefit. A typical fee may be an annual 40 basis point charge. One basis point is 1/100th of 1%. Almost all deferred annuities have a surrender charge. Surrender charges generally decrease to zero during the lifetime of the annuity contract. A surrender charge offsets the insurers cost if you prematurely surrender you contract.

In our opinion, annuities are excellent financial vehicles to use preparing for and during retirement. Other financial vehicles may or may not give you the benefits, liquidity and guarantees an annuity can. For example, mutual funds are expensive and have no guarantee’s except with the guarantee that the fund expenses and manager will be paid at your expense. You pay for all the funds cost (along with all the other investors that own that mutual fund). You take all the risk. Owning a individual stock can decrease in value instantly and is a risky strategy if your depending on this type of vehicle for financial support in retirement. With an annuity, the insurer bears all the financial risk.

We at www.RetirementWealth4you.com strive to provide you the consumer with the proper annuity with the lowest fees. We take into your consideration your time horizon, financial goals, financial liquidity, and whether it is suitable for you.

A Word Of Caution: If you pick the wrong annuity it can cost you money. Whether you use our service or another provider please know what type of annuity you’re getting, the benefits you receive and what the vehicle will do for you. Also know what fees if any, you’re paying for on an annual basis.

A Word Of Caution: Be very careful with variable annuities. Why? They can be more expensive. Are you getting enough guarantees in the contract? Is your principal at risk at anytime during the contract? Is your broker selling only one type of annuity to you, if so, why? You should be able to get more benefits, more guarantee’s, less risk, lower fee’s with a fixed or deferred annuity. We hope the broker is not selling you a variable annuity just because of the commission they receive. Ask the broker why they are recommending this product and does he have any other annuities to offer? You can consider exchanging your variable annuity or any other annuity for a lower fee annuity with better benefits to you. Only exchange your annuity if you will receive better benefits and it makes economic sense. Don’t exchange your annuity if you will lose money (contract value) on the exchange and you don’t receive a great economic value after the exchange.

A Word Of Caution: Don’t buy an annuity from anyone who sell’s one product line. This would include a captive insurance agency or agent, a broker who just has one product line for an annuity. Brokers may be compensated higher commissions for picking only certain products. You need to know all of your choices and options. www.RetirementWealth4you.com uses several independent channel lines to offer our clients. We are mandated to use what is in your best interest.


Why should I consider using an annuity to fund my retirement?
Here are five simple reasons:

1. They provide income guarantees from insurance companies which you may not get with other financial vehicles. When you retire… people want guarantees when it comes to their money.

2. Annuities provide principal and income protection...they are unique in this aspect.

3. Annuities may provide additional bonuses for your money. If you’re in a situation where you lost money in the market, you may be able to recover a portion of your loss. Please check all contact provisions for rules and entitlements.

4. Depending on what type of annuity you choose, you may be able to get a very competitive interest rate or index credit to help keep up with inflation costs.

5. Annuities provide assurances. You’ve probably worked hard to get where you are. Annuities are designed to provide you with financial security.


Why should you use I use your services?
You’ll get three great benefits:

1. We will only recommend the annuity that is best for your circumstances. And one of the top priorities is keeping your cost low as possible. We have a broad array of product offerings… and only use top tier insurance companies that are in the forefront of the annuity marketplace.

2. We’ll handle all of the paperwork for you. We will make the transition as smoothly as possible for you.

3. We will provide you with expert advice and great customer service! We have been in the annuity marketplace since 1997. Your broker or insurance agent may come and go, but you have toll free access to us and we’re here to help with your retirement needs.

Smart Moves:
If your waiting a year or so into retirement before buying an immediate annuity. Consider a deferred annuity instead.

Strategy:
You can collect a bonus and a higher income rider with a deferred annuity which in turn will give you a generally higher payout than an immediate annuity. All immediate annuities are subject to interest rate changes. You in essence are building up your capital base and fixed interest payout with a deferred annuity..


Strategy:
You can also get a greater payout by buying a life insurance policy to make up the difference between a single lifetime benefit (which will be a higher payout) than a joint and survivor payout. The difference in premium would be used to buy a life insurance policy on the annuitant. When the annuitant dies, the surviving spouse will receive a lump-sum cash payout that should meet or exceed the payments that would have been received on a single lifetime benefit. Caution on this strategy. The annuitant has to be insurable, the cost of insurance has to be affordable, and the mortality risk of the surviving spouse has to be taken into consideration. All three factors must be weighed carefully to make the decision. This strategy does not work in practice all the time based on the factors discussed above. However, in some cases the strategy may provide a greater substantial economic benefit to the surviving spouse. You may want to at least consider having a consultation to see if this strategy may work in your case.


Best practice:
Investigate the financial strength of the insurance company that guarantees your annuity.
Check the health of an insurance company with any of the three major independent rating agencies.
A.M. Best (www.ambest.com)
Moody’s (www.moodys.com)
Standard & Poor’s (www.standardandpoors.com)
Limit your options to insurers that receive credit ratings from A- to AA- or better.



Huge...Huge...Huge...Tip:
Not all insurance companies specialize in fixed income, deferred, or income annuities. You want an insurer who specializes with these products. The reason is you more likely you will receive better benefits and higher payouts when you’re ready to receive one.

We at www.RetirementWealth4you.com will shop insurers for you that deal exclusively in this market to provide you with the best quotes and benefits to you