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Annuties VS Funds Which Way Do You Go
WHEN DOES IT MAKE more sense to buy an annuity rather than a mutual fund? To answer that question, New York City insurance planner Glenn Daily performed a computer analysis using Fidelity Overseas fund as his example. He chose the fund because it is available directly to investors, through Fidelity's variable annuity and through a host of higher-priced annuities.
Annual expenses are 1.24% on the ...
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All You Really Need To Know About Dumping an Annuity
A variable or equity-indexed annuity is a contract with an insurance company that lets you build up investment gains tax-deferred until you withdraw the money, usually in retirement. Problem is, as MONEY has long warned, high fees and stiff surrender charges make these annuities lousy investments. Here's how to wriggle out.
1. If you just bought, reconsider.
"Free-look" periods of 10 or more day ...
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Good Buys-Low Cost Variable Annuities
ANNUAL EXPENSES ARE HIGH on most of the variable annuities sold by stockbrokers and insurance agents. Unlike front-end loads on mutual funds, higher annual expenses on annuities are something you keep paying year after year, putting a long-term drag on returns. If you're currently in a high-cost annuity, you might look into transferring your money to a low-cost one. Use this thumbnail guide to som ...
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How The Variable Annuities Performed
Here's an explanation of each column in the table below:
INSURER/FUND. Only variable annuities open to individual investors outside of employee pension plans are ranked. Accounts must be at least three years old to be listed, but not every such account appears here, except in the aggressive-growth category. Here's the total number of accounts with three-year records in the other categories: long ...
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How To Make Your Money Go Further
LIKE MANY RETIRESS JUDY worries that her money is insufficient to cover expenses and might eventually run out. She gets $2,100 a month from a combination of Social Security, a pension and a part-time job as an administrative assistant at a hospital. Her only debt is the $450 monthly mortgage payment on her condominium, and her strict budget even accounts for the $2 tip to her hairdresser. "I try t ...
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Is Your Annuity Safe
WITH THEIR guaranteed payouts and protection against market downturns, annuities have long enjoyed a reputation as a refuge in times of turmoil. But after AIG required government assistance (three times so far this year) to stay afloat and several life insurers saw their stock prices sink 70% or more over the course of two months, annuity owners might understandably be nervous. After all, you inve ...
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