![Brandon Bowen]()
Brandon Bowen |
July 29, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning
As you consider all of your financial options, there is one simple question or thought that you must filter your decisions and strategies through to have a successful, independent retirement. However, before you can look at various solutions, you have to understand the needs of your household. Once you know how much your monthly expenses are and how much you need for income in retirement, you are now ready to take the next step. The single most important question that you and your advisor must...
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![Rick Hughes]()
Rick Hughes |
July 18, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Deferred Annuities, Fixed Annuities, Index Annuities
What if you could have an investment that you knew you could not lose? Would this get you excited, or would you be thinking, “This is too good to be true”? I want you to imagine you and a friend are going to Las Vegas. This does not mean you are a gambler, but let’s pretend for a moment that you are sitting in Caesars Palace at the roulette table. The dealer tells you that you are in luck; he is going to let you...
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![Art McPherson]()
Art McPherson |
July 16, 2014 |
Annuity Basics
To start, let me tell you a secret that many banks, stockbrokers and insurance agents won’t tell you. All three want you to give them your hard-earned money, and all three make money off of your money being invested with their financial institutions. The banks make money when you keep your money in their branches, and they use your money as reserves, making loans to others and using your money as collateral. Because they are using your money, they will usually pay you an interest...
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![Anton Hendler]()
Anton Hendler |
July 11, 2014 |
Annuity Basics
The single biggest retirement concern facing seniors today is running out of money in retirement. A recent survey* questioning 1,000 Americans with $50,000 to $250,000 in investable assets—found that 55 percent of respondents were terrified of not having enough money to live out retirement. This beat fears of losing a job (35 percent), public speaking (25 percent), weight gain (24 percent) or going to the dentist (23 percent). If you are in retirement or still working and saving for retirement, take a few minutes to...
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![Richard Ericson]()
Richard Ericson |
July 2, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Annuity Caps, Fixed Annuities, Index Annuities
When I coached college football years ago, the young players often wanted to stand out, to be different and unique, and have some sort of distinction from the other players. Some would wear their uniforms differently, with multicolored socks or flashy undershirts. Some would do crazy things with their hair, like shave it off, grow an extra-long beard, or let their really long hair flow out of their helmet. Although any one of these features would get a player noticed, my coaching experience taught me...
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![John CasaSanta]()
John CasaSanta |
June 27, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Fixed Annuities, Immediate Annuities, Index Annuities, Variable Annuities
We often hear the expression that an educated consumer is the best consumer. I believe this holds true, whether someone is purchasing an appliance or an annuity. When visiting a client for the first time, after a discussion of goals and objectives, I like to explain the four types of annuities. Immediate Annuity – This is similar to a personal pension and the most traditional form of an annuity. When you implement an immediate annuity, you will receive a set amount of money for a...
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![Ryan Wheless]()
Ryan Wheless |
May 27, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning
Bonuses, rollup rates, income-doublers, payout rates… It’s all noise. What do you really get out of an annuity for every dollar you put in? Recently, a prospective client came into the office and was interested in discussing annuities. He said he and his wife were looking at an annuity that offered a 7% bonus and guaranteed 10% interest. However, before the prospect bought this annuity, he wanted to see what we had to offer. When I said, “What we have to offer you is an...
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![Ralph Hicks]()
Ralph Hicks |
May 23, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning
Close your eyes for a moment. Picture what your “ideal” investment would look like. Now that you are back to reality, what did you picture? Did some of following aspects come to mind? No risk to loss of principal Reasonable rate of return Liquidity of funds Low or no investment fees Diversification Income ability Tax deferral For many of you, these characteristics describe exactly what the “ideal” investment would look like for you. So, my question is – why don’t you have an investment like...
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![Keith L. Collins]()
Keith L. Collins |
April 4, 2014 |
Annuity Basics, Retirement Planning
The roller coaster ride of the stock market in the past five years has resulted in plenty of discussions regarding how to take advantage of the market highs while also protecting our savings against the market lows. However, with our obsession with stock market performance, we may be overlooking the one silent killer that can slyly erode the purchasing power of our retirement savings. Yes, I am talking about inflation. There are two big threats to our retirement savings. One is the risk of outliving...
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![John P. Grimes]()
John P. Grimes |
March 25, 2014 |
Annuity Basics
We survived one of the toughest winters in recent memory and now it’s time to do some spring cleaning. I’m not talking about cleaning out the closets, garage, basement or shed but more importantly cleaning out your financial portfolio. We all have to pull our financial info together this time of year to complete our annual root canal, filing our taxes! This is a great time to take a look at your investments and insurance policies to see if they still meet your needs or...
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