It has been an up and down year, to say the least and coming off of the holiday weekend I thought it best to remind everyone where we were a year ago.  Perspective is valuable when analyzing options for long-term financial health.  Two contracts I wrote about last year are up for renewal again so […]

I didn’t get a direct payment from the federal government because of Covid-19.  Some of you who are still working did but I’ll bet most did not.  This isn’t about welfare, rather that every one of you has been propped up financially by federal spending whether you realize it or not.  In order to truly […]

I guess it’s not enough for me to just tell you what products to avoid.  After a couple weeks of pointing out hidden issues and over-hyped contracts, a few people reached out to disagree or say they don’t want to hear about what doesn’t work.  So again I will encourage any of you who can’t […]

When was the last time you had a moment when something complex became crystal clear to you?  It happened to me on Thursday morning.  I ran up against the Allianz 222 again and called a rep at a different company to get some clarification on a competing product.  We talked about a lot of differences […]

There’s a lot to learn in this business.  Much of it requires consuming massive amounts of information and just about everyone is capable of doing that.  The rest is experience that only comes from seeing things change and develop over years.  My experience with using annuities has made me ever more confident in the advice […]

I’ve had the privilege of meeting several exceptionally talented people that contribute to society from all sectors of our economy.  Most people wouldn’t want to be mentioned on the website so I’ve not made a habit of featuring clients, but we are in the midst of unique circumstances. Meet Jacob Mirman, a physician in Minnesota […]

Most people don’t want to get too technical but those who do are able to make much better decisions.  My best clients often take as much as a year to make a decision and as a result they are all comfortable and happy with how things are working out.  I don’t expect deep analysis from […]

At a time when everyone is looking for a little something to keep busy, my wife would say that personal health and wellness should be a priority.  She is the most diligent, dedicated and disciplined person I know.  When the local gym closed down two weeks ago, she couldn’t teach her popular fitness class so […]

When I started this website it was all about fixed annuities.  A good fixed rate will solve any problem in retirement and beat the projections of every long-term guarantee.  Running the numbers and learning how to analyze solutions provided the inspiration to start spreading my message.  Unfortunately it wasn’t long before rates started dropping.  Multi-year […]

There must be some value in all the things I’ve written about on this website.  After all, I live in the world you are trying to figure out.  My job is meant to help people plan for times like these.  Loyal readers have heard it a hundred times and clients/friends know exactly what I’m talking […]