Carl Ostenson |
February 25, 2014 |
Carl Ostenson, Income Riders, Index Annuities
Do you want to put aside a portion of your retirement savings so it will guarantee you income when you retire? Here’s my Top 5 reasons why using an indexed annuity with an income rider could be a good solution: 1) LOCK IN THE LAST 5 YEARS OF GAINS: Since the market bottom in March of 2009 the SP 500 Index is up 165% without any real major correction. (As of 2/24/14) You are also 5 years older now and have less time to recover...
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Carl Ostenson |
February 7, 2014 |
Annuity Beneficiaries, Carl Ostenson
Do you have children or grandchildren that aren’t really good with money? You know the type, the ones who as kids, had their allowance spent before it was even in their pocket and now they have $20,000 in credit card debt and spend money even faster than a drunken sailor. Or maybe you have a child or grandchild who is struggling with drugs or gambling and a big lump sum of money would only make things worse. Or maybe you don’t really like your daughter’s...
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Carl Ostenson |
January 24, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Carl Ostenson, Member Posts
That’s a great question people ask themselves all the time. What I’d like to do it re-phrase it into a question that I think gets to the core of the matter with a little more clarity. “Will your Social Security and/or Pension be enough retirement income to pay your bills and have a little fun… OR… will you need more income than that? Because, if Social Security and/or your pension is enough income, then you don’t really have to worry about how much money you...
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Carl Ostenson |
January 10, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Carl Ostenson, Fixed Annuities, Index Annuities, Member Posts
Question: What happens at the end of my annuity? Answer: Usually people that ask me this question are typically talking about either a fixed rate annuity or an indexed annuity. So I’ll answer the question with those in mind (ie. a 5 year fixed annuity or a 10 year indexed annuity). So let’s look at each type separately: Note: You will see that the big difference between the two types is Option #1. With indexed annuities you can usually stay with them as long as...
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Carl Ostenson |
December 23, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Carl Ostenson, Member Posts
Here’s a question I have been getting more and more lately. With the bulk of Americans retirement money in qualified plans such as 401ks and IRAs, it makes sense. So let’s go through this bit-by-bit and give you some examples: When you turn 70 ½ Uncle Sam and his buddy the IRS will force you to start taking money out of your IRA or 401k regardless if you want to or not. It’s called the Required Minimum Distribution. You can read a table for calculating...
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Carl Ostenson |
December 1, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Carl Ostenson, Member Posts, Miscellaneous Annuity Info
A very common question that I get from people who have never put money into an annuity or aren’t that familiar with them is “How do I get the money from my current account, into the annuity?” So here are the 3 most common ways that people fund a new annuity contract Write a check Do an account transfer Transfer an old annuity into a new one Write a Check This is the easiest way to fund an annuity. Maybe you had a bank CD...
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Carl Ostenson |
November 11, 2013 |
Carl Ostenson, Fixed Annuities, Member Posts, MYGA
The “Plain Jane” vanilla ice cream in the annuity world is called a Fixed Rate Annuity…also known as MYGA (Multi Year Guarantee Annuity). She’s really pretty boring….you agree to deposit money at an insurance company for a certain period of years, 2-10+ year contracts are all available. In return, the insurance company agrees to keep your money safe and pay you a fixed rate of interest for that term. At the end of the term, you can take your money and do something else with...
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Carl Ostenson |
September 5, 2013 |
Annuity Beneficiaries, Carl Ostenson, Member Posts
The short answer is “Maybe, but don’t do it just because you can. Do it if it’s the only answer to a problem and you know exactly what you are doing.” IRAs and 401ks will pass on by way of contract to whomever you name as the beneficiaries. They will bypass the probate process and the lawyers involved automatically. A trust does not have to be involved if there is a beneficiary form. Most of the time, you do not need to name a trust...
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Carl Ostenson |
August 19, 2013 |
Annuity Beneficiaries, Carl Ostenson, Member Posts
When I do beneficiary reviews, or help clients fill out an annuity application, one of the easiest and neatest things to explain to them is how adding two words to their beneficiary form, can help to insure they don’t unintentionally disinherit their grandkids. It takes about a minute to explain, and then most people want to update their old forms right away. Here are all the different types of accounts that have beneficiary forms: Annuities Life Insurance IRAs 401ks, 403bs Some types of bank accounts...
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Carl Ostenson |
March 19, 2013 |
Carl Ostenson, Income For Life, Income Riders, Member Posts, Retirement Planning
Is it possible to upgrade your older annuity into a new one that has more benefits? The short answer is, YES. But the real answer is that it depends, and you need to do a little homework to be sure you are making your situation better, not worse. First let’s go through some common reasons why people might want to switch from one annuity to another. 1) Fees: This would apply mainly to Variable Annuities. The total fees can range from 2% to over 5%...
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