"Fun With Annuities" The Annuity Man Podcast

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Owning an annuity for what it will do  Annuities are a commodity product  Don't swallow the pitch    Key Takeaways:  You should own an annuity for what it will do, not what it might do. When you strip down annuities to the contractual guarantees, only then will it become commoditized.  Annuities should be quoted from multiple carriers to get the most fa...

The holidays are here, and so is this fan-favorite throwback! Take a trip down memory lane with this re-uploaded video - the perfect way to celebrate the break.   In this episode, The Annuity Man and Wade Pfau discuss: Retirement Income Style Awareness (Risa) framework Wade's different viewpoint on retirement 4% rule of thumb and its limitations The truth about retirement planning strategies    Ke...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Explain your annuity to a nine-year-old Why annuities seem complicated  Ask for contractual guarantees  Don't buy an annuity for market return   Key Takeaways:  You should be able to explain the annuity that you're getting ready to buy or considering buying to a nine-year-old. You should be able to explain the annuity type, how it functions, how it work...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Marrying the lifetime income Dating the rate  MYGAs are not callable   Key Takeaways:  Buying an annuity for lifetime income is like marrying a company. When marrying an annuity company for lifetime income, the company has to be A+ or better, except for a few exceptions.  A MYGA is the annuity industry's version of a CD. With MYGAs, you're locking in a...

In this episode, The Annuity Man and John Lenz discuss:  Don't lose track of your renewal rate  Laddering Multi-Year Guarantee Annuities  Reasons for buying a QLAC Suitability regulations   Key Takeaways:  Insurance companies are for-profit institutions. Historically, insurance companies have renewed annuities at a lower rate than new money rates, but not everybody, and not all the time. Don't los...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Making money from the sidelines The trifecta of principal protection  Nobody knows where interest rates are going to go    Key Takeaways:   In the past decade, you wouldn't make much money if you went to the sidelines. CDs, money markets, treasuries, and MYGAs weren't paying that much. However, until a few months ago, when interest rates moved significa...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Debunking generalizations about annuities Most annuity types have no fees  Are all annuities a bad deal?  What all annuities really are    Key Takeaways:  Making sweeping generalizations about annuities is as stupid as saying all restaurants are bad or all shoes are expensive. Anyone who says all annuities are bad should not claim their social security...

In this episode, The Annuity Man and Jack Lenenberg discuss:  Standalone traditional long-term care  Asset-based long-term care  The perfect time to buy long-term care  Long-term care and self-insurance    Key Takeaways:  A standalone, traditional long-term care insurance works just like health, auto, or homeowner insurance. You own a policy, and if you need long-term care, the company will pay th...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  When is it a good time to buy an annuity?  Are annuities for market growth?  Annuity sales tactics to be wary of    Key Takeaways:  Annuities aren't for everybody. If you need to transfer risk, need contractual guarantees, or solve for principal protection, income for life, legacy, or long-term care, then it's a good time to buy an annuity.  If your goa...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:   Solving for longevity risk  Four products for lifetime income  Focusing on guarantees    Key Takeaways:  There is no ROI until you die. Up until then, it's a transfer of risk to the annuity company to solve for longevity risk. The longevity risk is the fear that you'll outlive your money. An annuity will pay as long as you're breathing, even if you are...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Annuities are not complicated  Understand what you are buying  Trusting true fiduciaries    Key Takeaways:  Annuities are simple if you focus on the guarantees. It's agents who are focused on self-interest that pitch products that make annuities too complicated. Often, they entice their clients with misleading backtested numbers and value-less upfront b...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Products that adjust for inflation  Thinking rationally about inflation  Reverse-engineering annuity    Key Takeaways:  Many bad sales pitches out there mention a way to beat inflation using indexed products that adjust for inflation. What really happens is that the annuity company severely lowers the initial payment to make up for any potential increas...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  What is an income rider?  Buying based on your goal  Addressing inflation with DIAs and Income Riders   Key Takeaways:  An income rider is an attachment to a policy; you can't buy a standalone income rider. The only number that you have to focus on when you're pitched an income rider is the contractually guaranteed payout number.  When it comes to annui...

In this episode, The Annuity Man and Bill Black discuss:  The problem with indexed policies that agents don't often talk about  Backtested numbers in the life insurance side  Insurance is not an investment  How do hybrid life insurance policies work    Key Takeaways:  An indexed policy is a loan, which is supposedly non-taxable. However, people aren't told that interest is being paid out of the ca...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Acknowledging your wealth The scars of scarcity  Should you be worried about inflation  Setting up contractual guarantees   Key Takeaways:  Be rational about the wealth that you have. Don't say you're not rich if you are not one of the 40% of Americans today who have $400 to their name and are struggling. Acknowledge the wealth that you've earned.  Many...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Traditional laddering with MYGAs What is "reversing"?  Traditional laddering and reversing      Key Takeaways:  You do a traditional 3-year, 4-year. 5-year ladder if you are hoping that rates will go higher. It's a strategy you use when you want to have money as the rates are rising so that you can attach yourself and lock yourself in with those higher...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Why QLACs should be number one  Three reasons to buy a QLAC The downsides of a QLAC   Key Takeaways:  If agent commission didn't come into play, QLACs would be the number one best-selling annuity product. It's simple, pro-consumer, and works; it's a product that focuses on the "will do" and not the "might do." It's a guaranteed lifetime income rolled fr...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Transferring risk through annuities  Single Premium Immediate Annuities  Annuities are commodity products  Structuring annuities to combat inflation   Key Takeaways:  Annuities are transfer of risk products. You are transferring the risk to the annuity company to pay as long as you're breathing. Through annuities, you can create an income floor that you...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  An advisor who's an annuity hypocrite Annuities you might already own.  "All annuities are ____"   Key Takeaways:  An advisor who says, "never buy an annuity" or "all annuities are ___" is an advisor that has lost all credibility. Don't trust a hypocrite advisor. It's highly likely that you already own an annuity. Some examples of an annuity you might a...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  The Annuity PILL Do you need an annuity?  Is your money safe?  Overcoming FOMO   Key Takeaways:  You own an annuity for what it will do, NOT what it might do. Remember the PILL acronym: principal protection, income for life, legacy, and long-term care.  It's very simple to determine if you need an annuity period, and it comes down to two questions: What...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  What a MYGA isn't and what it is  What is a call feature?  Locking in interest in MYGAs   Key Takeaways:  A MYGA is the annuity industry's version of a CD. It's a Multi-Year Guaranteed Annuity. It's not an income annuity, and it's not annualization. It's when you give the money to the insurance company, and they contractually guarantee an annual yield f...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Annuities that increase with inflation  The role of interest rates on pricing  For products that adjust for inflation Reverse-engineering your income floor   Key Takeaways:  Annuities don't give things away for free. A product that magically increases with inflation doesn't exist.  Lifetime income is primarily priced based on your life expectancy at the...

In this episode, The Annuity Man and Kerry Pechter discuss:  Recommended readings for retirees  The many types and applications of annuity products  Pulling back the curtain on annuity systems  Two products that Kerry likes    Key Takeaways:  If you buy an annuity book, start with "Annuities For Dummies" because it's a primer, a foundational book, and much more. Issues of the Retirement Income Jou...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Better to be told than sold There is no urgency to buy Stop selling and start telling   Key Takeaways:  Ask yourself, do you need to be sold or told? Do you want to be told facts? Or do you want to be sold or convinced to buy a product that may not even suit your goals?  There is never an urgency to buy an annuity. The only urgency is for the client to...

In this episode, The Annuity Man discussed:  Looking for the sucker  Too good to be true No perfect annuity   Key Takeaways:  There's a saying in Vegas that if you don't know who the sucker at the table is, then it's you. The same goes for annuity pitches. You have to be on your guard and be aware of what a person's intention is when presenting a product.  Don't believe sales pitches that are too...