Get The Facts, Ask Joe Friday

Make sure you get and understand all the facts before making any critical decisions.

Do you remember the TV show “Dragnet” from the 1960s? The show star was Sergeant Joe Friday, played by Jack Webb. It seemed like at least once on each show Sgt. Friday would tell someone, "we just want the facts; that's all we want – nothing but the facts."

Well, that's what I want to briefly touch on now – “nothing but the facts” about Fixed Index Annuities. So, with a nod to Sgt. Joe Friday, here are a couple of facts about Fixed Index Annuities:

Fact #1:

A Fixed Index Annuity provides a contractual guarantee that you won't lose ANY of your retirement nest egg because of stock market fluctuations or volatility.”

We see market volatility on a reasonably regular basis in the stock market - one day, the Dow Jones Index will be up 200 points, and the next day it will drop 250-300 points. It reminds me of a cork bobbing up and down on the ocean's waves. You may remember what happened to that “cork” in 2008-2009 - the stock market had a major “correction,” and many lost 30-40% of their retirement savings!

On the other hand, my clients didn’t lose a dime of their nest eggs during that time. Every week on my Safe Money & Income radio show, I remind my listeners that “not one of my clients has ever lost ANY of their money because of stock market volatility.”

What? How is that possible? They didn't lose any money because their Fixed Index Annuities were not in the stock market, so their retirement money was never exposed to the market's volatility and didn’t "go up in smoke" when the market decided to dive.

Here’s something to consider - we ensure everything of value in our lives - our homes, our cars, our health, our lives, and owners of Fixed Index Annuities have also insured their life savings against loss. Instead of leaving their retirement money at risk in the stock market, they took the chance “off the table.” They placed the money they could not afford to lose into an insurance contract - an insurance contract on their money - a Fixed Index Annuity.

So - that's Fact #1 - Fixed Index Annuities provide a contractual guarantee against losing ANY of your retirement accounts because of stock market volatility.

Now let's go to Fact #2:

Fixed Index Annuities can convert retirement savings accounts, e.g., 401(k) and IRA accounts, into private pensions, i.e., guaranteed “paychecks for life.”

Multiple studies have shown that the Number 1 fear of the Baby Boomer generation is the “fear of outliving their money.” Fixed Index Annuities solve that problem, once and for all, by enabling the owners to convert their retirement accounts into a guaranteed income, a guaranteed monthly “paycheck,” for the rest of their lives. And, down the road, when the owner dies, the value of that Fixed Index Annuity will pass to the owner’s heirs.

We all want guarantees when it concerns our money, but traditional retirement accounts in the stock market don’t provide any warranties, do they? They typically do the opposite of what their owners want, don’t they? No guarantees of gains, no promise of not losing any money, and no guarantee of providing you with a lifetime paycheck.

The question you need to ask yourself is this – would you like to have these guarantees? Would you like to finally “take control” of your retirement account and turn the retirement account you have into the retirement account you want?