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Kerry Pechter
Kerry Pechter is the senior editor of Annuity Market News. As a reporter who writes about annuities and the annuity industry full-time and as a former marketing writer who specialized in annuities at The Vanguard Group, he brings both an outsider’s and an insider’s perspective to the writing of this book.
A financial journalist for many years, Kerry has written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and many other national and regional publications. His previous books include two career guides, A Big Splash in a Small Pond: How to Get a Job in a Small Company (Fireside) and An Engineer’s Guide to Lifelong Employability (IEEE). He is a graduate of Kenyon College.
Articles & Books From Kerry Pechter
Cheat Sheet / Updated 07-03-2023
Assess your personal situation and follow some basic guidelines for determining if an annuity is right for you. After you decide to buy an annuity, figure out how to shop for annuity contracts and how to use one to make your retirement years financially safer.Tips for deciding on an annuityIf you’re considering an annuity, take a serious look at your personal situation.
Article / Updated 06-27-2016
The single-year guarantee fixed annuity is like an adjustable rate mortgage in reverse. With this annuity, the insurance company promises to pay you a certain rate of interest for one year. But each year until the contract expires, the insurance company can raise or (more commonly) reduce that interest rate. The new rates are called renewal rates.
Article / Updated 06-27-2016
Although fixed deferred annuities are a relatively safe investment, there are also reasons why people tend to shy away from them. They include the following:
Low liquidity: Generally, if you take more than 10 percent of your money out of your fixed annuity during any single year of the surrender period, you pay a charge.
Article / Updated 06-27-2016
Fixed deferred annuities offer safe, but low, returns and tax deferral. Risk-averse investors buy them when they offer higher interest rates than CDs, when the stock market is declining or appears headed for a fall, and when they’ve already parked as much money as possible into other savings vehicles, like employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Article / Updated 06-27-2016
Although insurance companies usually assume your interest-rate risk when you buy a fixed annuity, that’s not always the case. With a market value-adjusted (MVA) fixed annuity, you assume the interest-rate risk. In return, the insurance company can afford to pay you a slightly higher interest rate than it pays on non-MVA annuities (book value annuities).
Article / Updated 06-27-2016
A fixed deferred annuity is the insurance industry’s version of a savings account. The annuity helps you earn a modest rate of interest safely, and allows you to postpone the payment of income taxes on your earnings for as long as you want.When you buy a fixed deferred annuity, you’re indirectly lending money — without taking the risk that the borrower won’t pay you back.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Annuities are complex but useful financial tools. Be aware of the latest annuity trends when you are buying and make sure you stay aware so your annuity continues to benefit you in the best way possible. The following checklist shows important reminders for you to track annuities:
Recognize that the annuity world changes.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you've made the decision to look for an annuity contract, keep this list on hand and cover every option it gives, so you can be confident you're staying on top of the annuities game.
Find an annuity-savvy adviser. Income annuities aren't yet widely used, so not many advisers or brokers understand them. Try to locate a professional who does.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you're considering an annuity, take a serious look at your personal situation. Examine the following points when shopping for an annuity to see what type best fits your needs or if you should even get an annuity:
Assess your needs. After you estimate your living expenses in retirement and identify all sources of income, you'll know whether you'll need an income annuity.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Index annuities were created in 1996, when investors were shifting their attention from bond-based investments like fixed annuities to stock-based investments, including mutual funds and variable annuities. (The greatest stock market rally in the history of the universe was well underway by then.)
To capitalize on the excitement over stocks, some insurance carriers started marketing a new kind of fixed annuity, called an equity-indexed annuity, or EIA.
