Planning on the Road Ahead Towards Retirement
Hello, everybody. Dave Duley here from Georgia Advisory Group, a full-service wealth and income planning firm. I wanted to take a few minutes to walk you through exactly what annuity services are offered at our firm and the things you need to be aware of when nearing retirement or considering annuities.
First, I wanted to give you an update on an earlier video that discussed the amount of money flowing into annuities in the past 12 months. In 2022, it hit another record in the last quarter, with over $82 billion deposited during that time. Out of that amount, 80 percent was made up of indexed annuities. The question is, why did so many consumers decide to move their money from the stock market to indexed annuities? The single answer is safety and reduced risk. While I won’t go into the inner workings of annuities here, we have many other videos in our library that you can review.
Our services focus on creating guarantees of principal with the option to take lifetime income, not just for you but also for your spouse. Despite the bad press annuities have received, billions of dollars continue to be placed in these financial vehicles. Today, over 40 percent of Americans retiring have some type of annuity funding their retirement income, whether through government programs or insurance companies providing these services. Pensions are becoming a thing of the past, and most people now rely on 401(k) accounts as their primary source of retirement savings.
However, there are issues with relying solely on these accounts. First, protecting the account from major market swings leading up to or during retirement is a concern. Second, how do you generate lifetime income with these types of accounts? Annuities serve this exact purpose, offering the possibility of unlimited growth while always protecting your principal. In addition, annuities provide added benefits in retirement, such as increasing income after you begin taking withdrawals and doubling income if there is a need for nursing home care, for example.
We emphasize the importance of using qualified money for these types of accounts. These are accounts you will be in for the remainder of your life, so penalties for early withdrawal will have no impact on your account whatsoever. If you currently have some type of annuity or are considering creating a self-pension, coming in for a review would be in your best interest.
Please explore our website, visit our video library, and consider subscribing to our newsletter to receive great content on a weekly basis. Feel free to give us a call, and we can walk you through the dos and don’ts of owning an annuity. Until next time.
