Annuity Straight Talk Newsletter
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![Blog1 post image Annuities and Retirement Happiness]()
August 7, 2015Annuities and Retirement Happiness
Continuing an earlier post, we have another study on how guaranteed income and annuities increase overall retirement happiness. The study focuses on how some portion of ‘annuitized’ assets increases overall happiness. It seems that when people eliminate the stress and worry of ever running out of income, their overall peace of mind increases measurably. The […]
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![Blog1 post image Why Consumers Love Annuities]()
June 3, 2015Why Consumers Love Annuities
I came on this article by Cyril Tuohy recently in Insurance News Net, a great publication for the insurance and advisor community. It has some excellent survey results and I decided to post it in its entirety below. The story surrounding annuities is a textbook example of the adage that there are two sides (at […]
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![Blog1 post image New Lows- Baby Boomer Retirement Confidence Study]()
June 1, 2015New Lows- Baby Boomer Retirement Confidence Study
As our economy continues to sputter along, from the front lines of retirement planning I continually feel like we are in a tenuous economic environment. The effects of a prolonged post-recession period of what feels like tepid growth are showing up as new people call into Annuity Straight Talk concerned about their retirement income and […]
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![Blog1 post image 5 Key Questions About Index Annuities]()
November 20, 20145 Key Questions About Index Annuities
The National Association of Fixed Annuities (NAFA) recently held a conference and prior to the event, a useful little document was circulated. It is a consumer facing a simple question and answer style comparison and clarification of fixed index annuities and variable annuities. The document speaks to many of the misconceptions in the marketplace and […]
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![Blog1 post image Market Correction Coming?]()
August 3, 2014Market Correction Coming?
Well it’s been quite some time since I reached out to the AST community with a blog post but recent market events warrant me dusting off the keyboard to make sure everyone is at least paying attention. Over the last month, the S&P 500 has dropped a shade more than 3%. It’s something that happens […]
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![Blog1 post image 8 Questions for You to Achieve Your Retirement Goals]()
May 15, 20138 Questions for You to Achieve Your Retirement Goals
A reader wrote in this week. Like so many, it seems this person has a hard time knowing where to start, and this is unfortunately a very common issue we run into every day. But not to fear! A few simple questions can get you on the right track to your retirement goals. Yes, I […]
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![Blog1 post image Hartford Follow Up- Don't Leap at Annuity Buyback Offers....Yet....]()
December 3, 2012Hartford Follow Up- Don't Leap at Annuity Buyback Offers....Yet....
As a follow up to last week’s article about Hartford offering buybacks on some of its annuity contracts as part of its portfolio cleansing, I thought I’d point you to a WSJournal piece in today’s paper. It may yet be premature to take annuity buyback offers! An annuity owners in the article is in a […]
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![Blog1 post image Target Date Funds- Missing The Target?]()
July 9, 2012Target Date Funds- Missing The Target?
Investors are flocking to target date funds at a rapid clip, with an estimated $400B estimated under management in target date funds. Target date funds allocate assets towards retirement at a defined date. So rather than re balancing the portfolio yourself over time, the fund managers do it for you. The problem with target date […]
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![Blog1 post image Get Realistic About Retirement Income Needs]()
June 19, 2012Get Realistic About Retirement Income Needs
Setting reasonable retirement income goals is the first order of business we address with potential clients. As it turns out, most pre-retirees have unrealistic income assumptions based on their assets, according to a recent survey of advisors. Plus, while asset distribution is a critical issue with consumers and advisors, there is hardly any consensus as […]
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![Blog1 post image On Cashing Out In Retirement]()
January 12, 2012On Cashing Out In Retirement
The tools used to maximize pre-retirement asset accumulation are not the tools of retirement income generation. Maximizing retirement income is just outside the scope of expertise for most traditional advisors and individuals because of the biggest unknown: life expectancy. An individual seeking to maintain full control over their money, and setting their own withdrawal rate, […]
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![Blog1 post image Traditional Asset Management Doesn't Work For Retirement Income Planning]()
April 18, 2011Traditional Asset Management Doesn't Work For Retirement Income Planning
After taking a week off to organize my thoughts and clear a pile of paperwork, I decided to take a course from WJB Training Bolton. We left off at the point of covering the major threats a portfolio will face through retirement and now it’s time to look at the traditional approach to conquering those challenges. […]
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![Blog1 post image Financial Threats In Retirement]()
April 4, 2011Financial Threats In Retirement
Welcome back to the second installment in the pension income series where I plan to name the threats to your portfolio while drawing retirement income. It is very important to understand the various challenges you’ll face over the long run and plan accordingly so your retirement years are smooth sailing. For the most part these […]
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