Keith L. Collins |
December 12, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Fixed Annuities, Member Posts
For most retirees living on a fixed income, every penny counts. Unfortunately for them, every penny counts to the Internal Revenue Service too. There’s no arguing that taxes on social security are incredibly high. As a matter of fact, according to current tax law, up to 85 percent of a person’s Social Security income is taxable when their total ‘threshold income’ exceeds a set limit. What is threshold income? Threshold income is the government’s formula for determining how much of a person’s Social Security is...
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Keith L. Collins |
December 11, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Member Posts, Secondary Annuities
Written By: Larry Klein in Walnut Creek, CA There are 2 types of annuity buyers that end up with annuities they would like to sell (and you could be the buyer): Those people who buy immediate annuities and then later decide they desire the cash rather than monthly or annual payments over time Those people who get legal settlements in the form of an annuity and they prefer to have a lump sum of cash You can be the buyer of such “secondary annuities” and...
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Todd D. Heckman |
December 11, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Healthcare, Long Term Care, Member Posts, Todd Heckman
The Medicare program began life as an addition to President Franklin Roosevelt’s vision to meet the needs of older workers living in America. Medicare was created in 1965 under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act to include health benefits for those retirees eligible for Social Security retirement. What is Medicare? Within 3 months prior to and up to 3 months after your 65th birthday, you are eligible to enroll in Medicare. There are no income qualifications (minimums or maximums) for the program, just...
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Richard Ericson |
December 9, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity Bonuses, Annuity Caps, Fixed Annuities, Income Riders, Index Annuities, Member Posts
Which equity indexed annuity is the best? Which annuity is the best for you? Often individuals become overwhelmed by the amount of choices available when learning about, and selecting the best annuity for their purpose. I believe those who are over 50 should have a majority of their retirement assets in safe, protected and guaranteed retirement planning vehicles. The key investment piece is the Equity Index Annuity. Equity Index Annuities may be referred to as fixed index, index, or hybrid. Equity index annuities are NOT...
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Jason Soloman |
December 6, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity123, Index Annuities, Jason Soloman, Member Posts, Surrender Charges
Some annuities, specifically indexed annuities, have a surrender charge that ranges from 3-15 years. So if you are not terminally ill, require nursing care for more than 90 days, and want to withdraw more than 10% from your annuity there will probably be some monetary consequences to go along with your withdraw. Some surrender charges are defined and won’t change; others fluctuate via their Market Value Adjustment. So what is a Market Value Adjustment (MVA)? Essentially a Market Value Adjustment is the insurance company’s way...
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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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Steve Powers |
November 26, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Member Posts
After nearly 15 years as a financial advisor, I’ve come to accept that every prospective client who contacts me is like a snowflake: no two are ever identical. While this is true, it is also true that there are many similarities between snowflakes and prospective clients, and one of those similarities is that many profess to not being fans of annuities. Fair enough. Recently, a CPA referred a gentleman to me who has spent nearly 30 years working for a large manufacturing company. And he’s...
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John L. Olsen |
November 18, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity Definition, Deferred Annuities, Fixed Annuities, Immediate Annuities, Index Annuities, John L. Olsen, Member Posts, Variable Annuities
If you’re like most people, you find the subject of annuities confusing. Just the terminology would befuddle anyone – “exclusion ratio”, “annuitization”, “indexed”, “cap rate”, “participation rate”, etc. As if that weren’t enough, the terms are not applied uniformly. Some writers about annuities refer to the kind that produces an income immediately after purchase as an “immediate annuity”; others call it a “payout annuity”. “Equity index annuity” and “fixed indexed annuity” are used almost interchangeably to refer to the same type of contract. And some...
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Stan The Annuity Man |
November 14, 2013 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity Bonuses, Ask Stan The Annuity Man, Fixed Annuities, Index Annuities, Member Posts
Question: Every agent I meet with is pushing a bonus as the main reason to buy the indexed annuity they are recommending. They make it sound like it’s free money, but I’m skeptical. What’s the truth about these upfront bonuses? Robert from Muncie, Indiana Answer: Phenomenal question Robert, and so important in the current over hyped annuity environment and the unregulated wild wild west of annuity internet promoters. Upfront bonuses really became popular around 5 years ago as an obvious way for insurance companies to...
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