The Baby Boomer And Retirement Income Specialist Matching Service Goes Active In North Carolina |
April 20, 2012 |
Annuity Basics
The first free online matching service designed to help baby boomers find retirement income specialists in their local communities is now live throughout North Carolina. Annuity123, the online retirement income educational portal, has opened their Annuity Harmony matching service for the benefit of all residents in North Carolina who are in need of retirement income planning guidance. This innovative online matching service is aimed to link retirees with retirement income specialists whose practice is in their local area. Over 30 years ago Americans were forced...
View Article
How Annuities are Taxed |
April 19, 2012 |
Annuity Basics
Although rules vary based on the type of annuity and how you elect to receive your money, the tax rules are not as complicated as many seem to believe. Kimberly Lankford wrote an article called ‘How Annuities Are Taxed’ which explains the taxation of annuities is an easily understood manner. In it, she highlights the various annuity types and gives insightful examples to support her explanations. Overall, the major theme is that all proceeds annuities that are purchased with pre-tax funds will be taxed at...
View Article
Can Annuities be Used to Pay for Long-Term Care? |
April 18, 2012 |
Annuity Basics, Life Insurance, Retirement Planning
Yes, you can transfer money from an annuity to pay long-term-care premiums without owing taxes. This was the result of a tax break that was included in the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Kimberly Lankford posted an article called ‘Use Annuities to Pay for Long-Term Care’ which gives great insight into the advantages that this tax break creates. She gives some powerful examples on how this can be used to both provide themselves with long-term-care while decreasing their taxable gains. For the specifics, please read...
View Article
What to Do With an Inheritance? |
April 11, 2012 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning, Your Retirement
Baby Boomers are expected to inherit roughly $8 trillion from their parents and formulating a plan for receiving that money prior to receipt can pay off in the long run. Sharon Epperson posted an article which describes some key factors to keep in mind when deciding what to do. In it, she notes that the first step in making the most of an inheritance is to outline your financial goals. Many boomers will be able to fund their own retirement and may be able to...
View Article
Fourth Quarter 2011 Indexed Insurance Sales |
March 25, 2012 |
Annuity Basics, Index Annuities
According to The Indexed Sales and Market Report, 2011 was a year full of records within the Indexed Insurance market. It was the fourth consecutive year for indexed annuity sales topping the 2010 record by over 13%. Indexed life also realized a fourth consecutive year of record setting sales. In fact, indexed life sales for 2011 soared past the previous record set in 2010 by nearly 40%. The results for indexed annuity and indexed life sales in 2011 were $32.4 billion and $974.0 million respectively....
View Article
Index Annuities Going Captive? |
March 8, 2012 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Index Annuities
For the average insurance professional selling index annuities, there have been some major ups and downs over the past few years. Just a couple of years ago it almost seemed certain that fixed index annuities were going to be changed to securities with 151A. However, the insurance and annuity community really came together and won a tough battle against the powerful broker dealers and FINRA. We have also seen commissions take a nosedive, caps have followed a similar pattern, and the beloved income riders that...
View Article
The Truth About Buy And Hold |
March 3, 2012 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning, Your Retirement
To begin, none of this can be construed as investment advice as we never give any investment advice or stock recommendations. What we strive to do is bring education and solid content to our readers. This week we came across an incredible read from CNN Money called, “Why Buy and Hold Doesn’t Work Anymore“. The title jumped out at us right away because that is usually the opposite of what CNN and many of their peers publish. Not to mention, it is the mantra that...
View Article
The “Stretch IRA” Could Be Finished For Good |
February 15, 2012 |
401k and IRA Blogs, Annuity Basics, Your Retirement
Although as consumers we are not even close to being experts on stretch IRA’s, we are certainly comfortable with the basics. We are also comfortable knowing the powerful value they contain to continue a legacy and to spread out large tax burdens. Well our friends up on Capital Hill (who apparently are experts at finding ways to bleed more taxes out of us) are discussing a proposal that would end the stretch IRA’s for good. As you read the well written article below by Michael...
View Article
Things to consider when you are choosing where to retire |
February 11, 2012 |
Annuity Basics
If you’re getting close to retirement, the question always seems to come up of where the best place to retire is. Are you going to stay in your house? Are there warmer climates that are calling your name? We’re going to explore some things to consider when you’re making this important decision. Let’s start with income considerations. For a retiree, income comes in the form of pensions, IRAs, or money coming in from properties and investments. The states with the highest income taxes are...
View Article