Annuities
Not everyone of us is equally prepared for retirement. While some of us are fortunate to have built a nest egg that will last us through our Golden Years, others will depend on government programs for retirement income. Regardless of which side of this divide you are on, Annuities can be a powerful vehicle to help you fund your retirement dreams.
Whether it is to deliver guaranteed income* to you and your loved ones in retirement, to help protect your principle while also providing income, or to provide death benefits to your beneficiaries upon your passing, there are annuity products to meet every conceivable need.
Why Annuities are Important
The short answer: Diversification. Peace of Mind. Flexibility!
Many retirees and soon-to-be retirees are concerned over the safety of their investments in mutual funds, ETFs and stocks. The gyration in the stock market is often hard to stomach for seniors entering their Golden Years. With the help of a well-chosen Annuity, one can add a layer of diversification to your retirement portfolio.
Then, there’s peace of mind. Annuities are structured as investment vehicles that are insulated from the fate of stock market behaviour. The goal of an annuity is to provide a steady stream of income, typically during retirement.
And of course, for the soon-to-be retiree who is concerned that he/she has missed the proverbial retirement savings boat, Annuities offer good news! Because there’s no limit to how much you can contribute in Annuities, on an after-tax basis, you’ll have flexibility in how much you save, and will never have to worry whether it’s too late to play the “catch up” game.
How We Can Help
Determining Your Objectives
If used strategically, Annuities can be an extremely powerful retirement income planning vehicle. Here are some of the ways that our Annuity experts can help you:
Use Annuities as a Retirement Planning Option
Our team of professionals will work with you to review your entire existing portfolio to determine whether annuities are right for you. In some cases, an overexposure to other fixed-income products, like Bonds and Dividend-paying stocks, could still leave your retirement income exposed. We’ll help you decide if annuities are the right retirement planning option for you.
Make Cost-Effective Annuity Choices
Not all annuities are created alike. While they may generally be a great choice for generating fixed-income in retirement, the cost associated with producing such income could sometimes be high. Our financial professionals are familiar with the annuities, and can help identify the most cost-advantaged annuity investments for you.
Receive Tax-Advantaged Income
We help clients manage their tax liability through prudent product selection. Some annuities, like tax-deferred variable products, enable investors to receive tax-deferred income now – by not including such income to determine your current tax liability. Subsequently in retirement, when you might be in a lower tax bracket, your annuity-dependent income will not be a source of significant taxes.
Build Flexibility into your Retirement Planning Objectives
We do this by choosing annuity products that can easily be switched between investment portfolios without the risk of triggering associated taxes. So, if your investment objectives change during the investment horizon, you can effortlessly switch to a different annuity to support your new objectives, without fear of being saddled with a huge tax liability.
*The guarantee of the annuity is backed by the claims paying ability of the issuing insurance company.
**Withdrawals from annuities, including partial withdrawals and surrenders, may be taxable. If you take a taxable withdrawal before age 59 ½ you may have to pay a 10% penalty to the IRS in addition to your normal income taxes. Purchasing an annuity with a retirement plan that already offers tax deferral results is no additional tax benefits. The guarantee of the annuity is backed by the financial strength of the underlying insurance company. Guarantees and benefits are subject to claims-paying ability of the insurance company. Although it is possible to have guaranteed income for life with a fixed annuity, there is no assurance that this
