Annuities sound complicated. Does Dave recommend them?
Annuities do require a little more education than some other investments, and done without understanding the rules or at the wrong time, annuities can be a train wreck. But if done after other pre-tax investments and with money that is going to be left alone for plenty of time, they can be a great tool for getting tax deferred growth. Tax deferred growth is a big deal over time and worth learning about annuities to attain. Flags to watch for when dealing with an advisor concerning annuities are: a) an advisor that won’t discuss other options besides an annuity or won’t discuss more than one specific annuity, and b) an advisor recommending you move money that already has tax deferred status, such as a 401K rollover, into a variable annuity. 401K dollars already have the benefit of tax deferral and should be moved into an IRA, not an annuity. (Paying annuity fees to move tax deferred money into an annuity for tax deferral is redundant.) One last thing to pay attention to are the bells an
