Fixed and Variable Annuities More Attractive to Baby Boomers

I read a report this week that sales of fixed annuities in 2008 were up 60% in 2008 over 2007.  In the last quarter of 2008 alone, fixed annuity sales were $34.1 billion, up 90% from a year earlier, according to data from the Beacon Research Publications Inc.

Meanwhile, indexed annuities increased 12% to $7.2 billion, and immediate annuities sales were $2.4 billion, up 22% from 2007.

This tells me that baby boomers are increasingly turning away from the ups and downs of the stock market.  Instead they are looking at ways to use their retirement funds to purchase a secure income for life.

< One of the big concerns with all annuities are the associated fees.  Many of these fees are concealed inside the sales pitch and are rarely talked about.  These can include commissions, management fees, investment fees, and surrender fees.

I received a contact this week from a representative of Jefferson National, a seller of annuities.  He was touting the benefits of his employer’s new “Monument Advisor”  variable annuity product.  I haven’t had a chance to dig into the details, but according to the product’s “annuity rescue center” site, the fees are fixed at a flat $20/month for life, regardless of the amount invested.  That is indeed a radical change from most other annuity products.

As I do in all of my posts, I have linked to this annuity product site not because I am endorsing it or because they have paid me to do it.  Rather, I do it simply to inform other baby boomers of new retirement products that may be of interest. 

This week my writing appeared in the Carnival of Personal Finance #195 and the Carnival of Everything Home. I encourage you to pay a visit to these carnivals where the hosts have put together great collections of writings from around the blogosphere.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and let me know if you learn about any interesting new annuity products that you learn about.

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My Related Posts:

1. Variable Annuities with Living Benefits
2. New Types of Variable Annuities for Retirement
3. Boomer and Retirement Weekly Reader – Variable Annuity Edition
4. Are Annuities the New Pension?
5. Equity Indexed Annuities – Problems, Risks and Benefits