Resources

So what are annuities? Do you want to know How Annuities work?  These Resource Pages give information on the wide range of annuity products.

Here’s the Straight Talk: An Annuity is a contract between you and an insurance company.  You pay premiums to the company, and the company in turn grows your money Tax- Deferred, and commits to pay you either a lump sum, or a stream of income. 

There are two main categories, each with two main choices.

In terms of timing, there are either Immediate Annuities, or Deferred Annuities.  These two choices refer to the timing of the payments from the insurance company to you.

In terms of the rate of appreciation on the capital you give the insurance company, there are either Fixed Annuities, or Variable Annuities.

Sounds simple, right?  Well there are millions of ways to complicate even the most straightforward concept, and annuities are no exception.   We’ll cut to the chase and help you understand the ground rules.  If you determine that an annuity might make sense for you, be sure to become a Member for our essential tools to choosing an annuity.

Also, check our page on structured settlement annuity buyers if you’re looking to sell an annuity contract, or just to explore for info on a joint and survivor annuity, a Medicaid friendly annuity, or answers to a host of other common questions.

We also have sections on annuity riders and living and death benefits- this is where products can get complicated, and expensive.  Be sure to look at the premium pages of this site once you are a Member too- our tools can really help you to cut to the chase and figure out what is important and what is not.