Annuities? Have you been talking to someone who want to sell you something?

Go to the Vanguard site and look at their annuities. They don't really advertise them, you will do a little digging but like I said, I would never give mine up, great peace of mind. As much as I like them, I also would never put all my eggs in one basket so these represent one of my income streams.
 
aja8888 said:
The Vanguard annuities are offered through Hunter Investment Services if you work your way into trying to get a quote.
Click to expand...

No, it is Monumental Life Insurance Company as I look at the front page of the ones I own.....maybe they changed companies since I bought mine but it definitely wasn't Hunter.
 
Copied and pasted from the Vanguard website:

What guarantee do I have for my annuity contract?
The guarantee is subject to the claims-paying ability of the issuer, Monumental Life Insurance Company and, in New York State only, Transamerica Financial Life Insurance Company, both of which are highly rated for financial strength.
 
Kimo said:
No, it is Monumental Life Insurance Company as I look at the front page of the ones I own.....maybe they changed companies since I bought mine but it definitely wasn't Hunter.
Click to expand...

Hunter is the broker, it seems. I would guess they broker for a lot of insurance companies.
 
I am sorry but I challenge the efficiency of a charitable annuity as well...as long as there is a middleman (salesman) a portion of your principle will be syphoned off...
 
I've considered buying a deferred annuity. They may put fancy names on it like "longevity protection insurance", but what I'd want to do is buy something at age 65 that starts at age 80 if I'm still around. Last time I looked, you could buy $20K starting at age 80 for a flat $50K up front at age 65. When I'm 80 (in 2033!) that may pay for groceries, so I'd probably need to commit more up front to get anything meaningful, and then it gets scary to part with that much money. The good side is that you might be able to invest your remaining funds more aggressively knowing you have steady income from the annuity.
 
Kimo said:
Copied and pasted from the Vanguard website:

What guarantee do I have for my annuity contract?
The guarantee is subject to the claims-paying ability of the issuer, Monumental Life Insurance Company and, in New York State only, Transamerica Financial Life Insurance Company, both of which are highly rated for financial strength.
Click to expand...

Operating companies that are part of the AEGON group, a large Dutch-American life insurance group. They had their troubles during the crisis, but unlike their countrymen at ING they did not have to be bailed out so thoroughly that the company had to be dismantled after the crash was over.
 
rayinpenn said:
I am amazed to see the number of people suggesting and hawking annuities. Sure annuities pay a guaranteed fixed return but they also expose the owner to inflation. The results of which could be disastrous for a retiree.

The people who love annuities most are those who sell them as they pay handsome commissions. Ask yourself who is really funding those commissions? Answer: the buyer and at what cost? If that much money is going to the salesperson how can they be efficient. answer: They can't and are not! I don't pay up front fees for mutual funds and I don't fund annuity salespeople's retirements.

I buy low admin fees diversified mutual funds and efts ( emphasis on dividend paying ) and have done exceptionally well. I never sweat the dips corrections because the market always comes matching back. Google transparent investing.

Years ago (too many to count) I bought my first dividend paying stock and I received that first dividend. The sky immediately turned blue and I swear I heard harp music - it was an awakening! The dividends continue to come in and even in the last credit disaster the dividends kept getting posted to the brokerage account. It is hands off investing.

http://www.transparentinvesting.com/uploads/wholestory.pdf

If you buy with the intention of holding forever the price really isn't important - the stream of income is.
Never let anyone sell you anything... Do your homework and cut out the middleman.
Click to expand...

only thing i disagree with is the share price is very important if living off dividends directly.

cut or suspended dividends come at the worst of possible times which is during downturns.

having to sell shares off at steep losses to make up for shorfalls in income is certainly a big concern.
 
mathjak107 said:
only thing i disagree with is the share price is very important if living off dividends directly.

cut or suspended dividends come at the worst of possible times which is during downturns.

having to sell shares off at steep losses to make up for shorfalls in income is certainly a big concern.
Click to expand...

That is the purpose of the bond portion of the mix. Very few would want to have a 100% stock portfolio during retirement.
 
but if you are already drawing the bond income as part of your income anyway and combining it with the dividends how does the short fall get met?

you could sell additional bonds but then that would decrease the following years income.

the answer is you really do need to care where that share price goes.

i can see reinvesting dividends and letting them grow over time and eventually when markets are up sell shares and refill a spending bucket but i can't see planning on trying to live off dividends directly anymore then i would want to live off stocks directly.. they both are joined at the hip and fall in unison.
 
Last edited:
This is one of the reasons I like the ones I bought......the Monthly income can only go up, it can never go down....and it is Wellington which has been around since the late 20's or early 30's....I am not losing sleep!
 
Kimo said:
This is one of the reasons I like the ones I bought......the Monthly income can only go up, it can never go down....and it is Wellington which has been around since the late 20's or early 30's....I am not losing sleep!
Click to expand...

Wellington is a mutual fund, and it can go up and down.
 
aja8888 said:
Wellington is a mutual fund, and it can go up and down.
Click to expand...

Yes, you are right, it is a mutual fund and it can go up or down, the beauty is it is guaranteed a certain percentage of income regardless of up or down (in the years I have owned it, it has only gone up)....heck, it can go to zero and I still get my payment.....of course we and the rest of the world would have bigger problems if every stock and bond in the Wellington fund went to zero....LOL
 
PS. The percentage is a number (5%, depends on your age when you buy it) of total assets when you buy it, once a year it takes a snapshot to see if your monthly income stays the same or go's up.
 
Kimo said:
Yes, you are right, it is a mutual fund and it can go up or down, the beauty is it is guaranteed a certain percentage of income regardless of up or down (in the years I have owned it, it has only gone up)....heck, it can go to zero and I still get my payment.....of course we and the rest of the world would have bigger problems if every stock and bond in the Wellington fund went to zero....LOL
Click to expand...

I don't think mutual funds guarantee any income, Wellington or otherwise.
 
I did all my paperwork with Vanguard, there was never a broker named, my money went straight from my Vanguard account to a new Vanguard annuity account. I have looked through my paperwork (about as much as I can stand, reading that "stuff") and I can't find a broker referred to anywhere...

There is a place from that link to look at the holdings of the Balanced (Wellington) fund and then compare it to the Wellington fund. Because I own both it was much easier to compare on the Vanguard website, I just pulled my 2 accounts down and looked at the holdings.

I really don't think there is a broker though, wouldn't he/they want money and there isn't any to go around. My entire amount debited from my initial account was exactly the same in the annuity. The management fee is also identical.
 
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