Fixed indexed annuity sales are steadily gaining on those of variable annuities, thanks in large part to continued low interest rates.
The optional features allow for more investor choice and seek to capitalize on strong IOVA sales.
The firm is suspending sales in traditional life insurance and fixed annuity products in the first quarter of 2016.
In response to Finra's warning on suitability, the firm's affiliated brokers will no longer sell certain types of L share annuities, a move that puts the company in line with other B-Ds.
<i>Breakfast with Benjamin</i>: The word 'recession' is being used openly on Wall Street, in case you needed more proof that the U.S. economy is barely moving forward.
Most know it's a key part of retirement planning but lack in-depth knowledge when the need for care arises.
Six areas in which planning for couples with a wide age difference may require different financial advice.
BofA study finds auto enrollment plans helping a lot but workers, particularly younger ones, are more confident as the financial crisis continues to fade.
65-year-old couple retiring this year should expect to spend $245,000 on health care costs, up $25K from last year.
Smart-beta strategies got their latest seal of approval in the form of a $100 million mandate from variable annuity giant Jackson National, which has added the DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE Fund to its menu of VA investment options.
This is the time of year when everyone on Medicare can reevaluate features of their plans to see if they're getting the best coverage at the best price.
Although estimates of life expectancy just got longer, clients aren't prepared to make hard planning decisions.
Variable annuities may have won the day in quarterly sales, but broker-dealers are stepping up their distribution of fixed indexed products, which hedge against rising interest rates.
The Boston retirement-services giant is giving its clients a new option for planning for the costs and risk of living longer by making deferred-income annuities available for retirement plans. <i>(See also the <a href="http://www.investmentnews.com/gallery/20150821/FREE/821009999/PH/top-10-annuity-sellers-in-the-second-quarter" target="_blank">Top 10 annuity sellers in the second quarter.</a>)</i>
Paying for health care has rarely been considered a major threat to retirement budgets, but with health care inflation driving costs higher, increased longevity and Medicare means-testing imposed on higher-income retirees, that's changing fast.
<i>Breakfast with Benjamin</i>: Despite the mood on Wall Street getting downright gloomy, some economists still think the Fed will raise interest rates next month.
Latest product comes as qualified longevity annuity contracts look for a place in retirement accounts.
Clients who elected to file and suspend their Social Security benefits will be hit with a big Medicare Part B increase next year but don't panic. Delaying is still a good strategy.
<i>Breakfast with Benjamin:</i> An expected drop in crude prices to $30 to $40 a barrel this fall might not be enough to balance global oil markets.
