My incredibly smart friend, “Professor Z,” chatted with me on the phone recently about why he is such a big fan of the tax-deferred growth MYGAs provide in non-IRA accounts. He chastised me a little for not pounding the educational table harder when it comes to tax deferral. He’s right. MYGAs are the annuity industry’s version of a CD.  And when you compare the two strategies when using non-IRA money, CD interest is taxable annually. MYGA interest compounds are tax-deferred. Big deal? You better believe it! Tax-deferred compound interest with annuities started in the 1950s with TIAA-Cref variable annuities, and MYGAs are now leading the way with this pro-consumer benefit.

Look for “Professor Z” to be an upcoming guest on my Fun With Annuities podcast. Mad smart dude!

Something pretty strange happened with my recent YouTube video on Fixed Index Annuity Returns. In the video, I referenced an article in Retirement Income Journal that researched real returns on FIAs and blew the industry away with the findings. Spoiler alert, those returns were very low compared to the typical misleading FIA sales pitch of “market upside with no downside.” Here’s the crazy part, when I recorded the video, that article was still posted on that publication’s site. I was just informed that this controversial article has been pulled down. I hope this is not true, but some sectors of the annuity industry must have demanded its removal. The facts and stats remain when it comes to FIAs. They were designed to deliver CD-type returns, and that’s exactly what they have done since they were first introduced in 1995.

I was Shootin’ It Straight in my video addressing if your retirement assets are Volatile or Contractual. My question is, do you really need your money to be volatile? Can your ego live with it being contractual? Remember, you don’t “have to” be in the markets or put your money at risk. Consider transitioning to contractual. It’s a lifestyle you deserve and worked hard to achieve, so why not?

How do you use an annuity inside of an IRA? My Q&A Friday video answered this common question. In my opinion, “Never put annuities inside of an IRA” is one of the dumbest statements ever. Annuities work inside of IRAs because you buy annuities for their contractual guarantees, and contractual guarantees work like a charm with IRA money. So, there should be no hesitation to use IRA assets to secure contractual annuity guarantees.

Don’t forget my upcoming Annuity Man Live Event on December 17th at Noon ET, and sign-up here to secure your virtual seat. Get those questions ready, because I’ll have consumed plenty of coffee by the time we go live.

Your Lead Annuity Guitarist,