I bought an annuity inside an IRA when I was a dumb kid; can I annuitize it before I'm 59 1/2?

[gauss]

Fidelity has a team to help you close out an annuity. Best to contact Fidelity to get the process started.

That is so very true.

My Mom had an IRA annuity at Allianz. When I inherited the annuity, Allianz gave me options such as "annuitize with us" or lump sum distribution. None of these were appealing.

The one option that they wanted nothing to do with was to retitle the annuity into my own name so that I would have more flexible options.

They threatened that I could try to transfer it to another provider, but if there was any problem on the forms that would result in an immediate full lump-sum distribution. The value was just short of 100,000.

I was able to get into touch with the proper Fidelity department to handle such things (and Fidelity has multiple special departments) , explain the situation and the game the Allianz was appearing to be playing.

They said that they could prepare the transfer paperwork and ensure it was proper.

At the end of the day, I ended up with an inherited IRA at Fidelity and Allianz ended up with nothing.

It is important to note, that I did NOT use a Fidelity financial advisor as part of this process. I did not want a relationship with an adviser -- I just needed transactional assistance from the corporate experts on this that would lower my risk of a lump-sum distribution in a year that I was already in a high tax bracket.

-gauss

 

[gauss]

OP, if the annuity company will allow partial distributions (ie $1000 or so), perhaps you could withdrawal that and then get first hand experience with their process and validation that the 1099-R is issued and taxed according to your understanding. You could also attempt the rollover with a small amount if they allow partial distributions.

The second year, you could move the big money once you have confidence that you know how it will all work.

Perhaps your annuity company will be more flexible in these types of things if it is your original IRA and not an inherited one as mine was (as described in prior post).

-gauss

 

[pb4uski]

That's a good thought, but my other IRA account is a Roth.

Well you can always open a traditional IRA, either where you have the Roth or at the brokerage of your choice. Then perhaps set up a SEPP/72t if you want cash flow.

 

[VanWinkle]

Roll it into something besides another annuity inside an IRA
account with Vanguard, Fidelity, or Schwab. Invest in low cost
index funds or low cost managed funds with a conservative tilt
that will return 5-6 % without having the access to the money
determined by an insurance company.