News & Updates

PLAYING A GAME

I saw an article this past week which spoke about a new interactive game called “Master of Retirement” and thought to share it with you. Surveys power the game’s questions and offer out informative responses. One question asked in the game is “What is a reason some people choose a

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MORE LIFETIME INCOME

This week’s article discusses how “recent research by retirement income expert and former U.S. Treasury Department official Mark Warshawsky shows that immediate annuities generally provide you with more lifetime income than you could get by following the take-out-4-percent-of-savings-a-year rule or a similar strategy of systematic withdrawals”. It was interesting to

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HISTORY

Did you know that the “concept of annuities dates to ancient Rome, but the first record of annuities in America comes from the Colonial period. In 1759, a company formed to provide a secure retirement for aging Presbyterian ministers and their families. In 1812, the Pennsylvania Company for Insurance on

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SHOULD YOU TAKE A LUMP SUM FOR RETIREMENT?

This week’s article caught my eye when it said “It turns out, many retirees choosing to take their employer’s 401(k) or pension as a lump sum for retirement are taking their lumps.” A survey reported in the article stated that about a fifth of retirement plan participants surveyed “who received

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A SLAM DUNK

I read a good Consumer Reports article the other day that discussed when there isn’t enough saved to meet a retirees expectations in retirement. The article states “Fortunately, there are a number of options for generating extra income without asking undue risks,” and referenced that “to generate guaranteed income in

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CRISIS IN RETIREMENT PLANNING

The Harvard Business Review published an interesting article explaining how when interest rates and stock prices both plummeted, “the value of pension liabilities rose while the value of the assets held to meet them fell.” You don’t need to be a participant in a group plan to experience similar problems,

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FACTS + STATISTICS

A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report referenced in this week’s article “highlights the role annuities can play in helping people secure enough income during retirement.” With so many of us searching for additional sources of income that we can’t outlive, annuities frequently come up as an option to consider. Call

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NEW DATA

This week’s article emphasizes that “Americans need to take additional steps in order to ensure a financially stable retirement – one that allows them to pay for medical bills and essential costs of living while enjoying their bucket list.” Have you thought about Fixed Indexed Annuities to help do this?

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DIFFERENCES CAN MATTER

Do you understand the different types of insurance coverage that you own? This week’s terrible hurricane has brought to light the devastating effect that nuances in an insurance policy can have on our future financial security. It is useful to apply this lesson to retirement planning, and to make sure

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QUESTIONS TO ASK

“Knowing how much and where to save your money is essential to leading a financially secure life”. However, “wrapping your head around the multitude of retirement options available” can not only be stressful, but confusing. This week’s article is useful in that it provides three questions that you should be

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BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Sometimes it is important to go back to basics and talk about the meaning of words that are often used when discussing options for getting that lifetime income you need. “Annuitization is one asset management strategy for retirees seeking to secure lifetime income.” If you are looking to obtain guidance

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SHORTFALL OR SURPLUS?

We have often discussed that one of the biggest risks to a comfortable retirement is running out of money too soon. Sometimes the difficulty is in figuring out where you stand, so I thought to share with you an on-line calculator which “helps you determine your projected shortfall or surplus

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WHAT IS IT?

The other day a friend told me that sometimes it was easier to explain what something was by telling what it was typically used for. This week’s article does a good job of telling us that “the usual purpose of a deferred annuity is to accumulate value for a retirement

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ARE YOU SURE YOU KNOW WHO YOUR BENEFICIARIES ARE?

This week’s article provides some resources I thought to share with you relating to beneficiary designations on financial assets such as checking, life insurance and retirement accounts. Because “each of these accounts has a named owner and often a beneficiary to receive the proceeds if the owner were to die”

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SUMMER TIME

This week’s article writes about topics on all of our minds right now, summer vacation! Just as you may have been busy this past year planning ahead, saving and budgeting both your time and money for a summer vacation, those same disciplines apply to getting “your retirement savings on track”.

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DO YOU HAVE A DEFINED CONTRIBUTION OR BENEFIT?

This week’s article tells us that the typical U.S. household has few retirement savings, and that most people rely on social security. One of the reasons is the reduction in employers offering any retirement plan, and another is for those that do, there seems to be a shift away from

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GET CONFIDENT

“Imagine trying to take an around-the-globe trip without looking into the details. In essence, that’s what millions of Americans do every day as they ponder retirement. They head out on the journey and hope for the best.” We believe that the best course of action is one that is planned

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EDUCATING

We believe in educating our clients, and appreciate the frustration that can occur when conversations about retirement planning include words that may be new, or difficult to understand. Because of this we thought to give you an extensive glossary of terms that you may hear or read about in the

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