Annuities
Income that doesn't stop when the paycheck does.
Fixed and fixed indexed annuities — a contract with an insurance carrier that grows on a floor instead of a guess, and can convert into income for the rest of your life. We don't offer variable annuities.
- ✓ A 0% floor in down years on indexed contracts
- ✓ Optional income you can't outlive
- ✓ Tax-deferred growth until you withdraw
Annuities are insurance contracts, not deposits or investments. Guarantees are backed by the claims-paying ability of the issuing carrier and are not FDIC insured. Withdrawals may be subject to surrender charges and, before age 59½, a 10% IRS penalty. We offer fixed and fixed indexed annuities only.
Good fit if…
You're within about ten years of retirement, you have money you won't need to touch for a while, and what keeps you up is running out rather than missing a rally.
What it isn't
It isn't a bank account, it isn't FDIC insured, and it isn't a way to beat the market. It's a trade — some upside and some liquidity, for a floor and a guarantee.
The call
15 minutes with a licensed Minnesota agent. We'll look at the surrender period, the caps and the carrier's ratings before anyone talks about rates.
How it actually works
You hand a lump sum to a carrier. In return the insurance company contractually guarantees how your money grows and, if you want it, how much income it pays you later. It's a contract, not an account you dip into.
Fixed means a declared rate. The carrier states an interest rate for a set term. It's the insurance industry's version of a CD, and the rate is what it says it is.
Fixed indexed means a floor and a ceiling. Your credit is tied to an index like the S&P 500, but it's capped in good years and floored at zero in bad ones. You give up the top to be protected at the bottom.
The surrender period is the trade. Most contracts lock the money up for somewhere between five and ten years. You can usually take about 10% a year without a charge; past that, a surrender charge applies.
Income you can't outlive is the point. You can convert the contract into payments for a set number of years or for the rest of your life. That guarantee is the thing an ordinary investment account can't give you.
It's backed by the carrier, not the FDIC. Guarantees rest on the issuing insurer's claims-paying ability, with limited backstop from Minnesota's guaranty association. Carrier strength ratings matter here more than the headline rate.
When this is the wrong fit
Annuities get sold hard, which is exactly why we'd rather talk you out of one you don't need. A fixed or indexed annuity is a poor fit if:
- You might need the money inside the surrender period. Liquidity is the price of the guarantee, and surrender charges are real.
- You're under 59½. Taking gains out before then generally adds a 10% IRS penalty on top of ordinary income tax.
- You don't have an emergency fund yet. Cash you might need within a year doesn't belong in a multi-year contract.
- You want the market's full upside. Caps and participation rates are how the floor gets paid for. If you want the index's whole return, buy the index.
- You haven't captured your employer match. That match beats any annuity rate on offer.
- Someone told you it's guaranteed and tax-free. Growth is tax-deferred, not tax-free, and the guarantee is only as good as the carrier behind it.
If any of these describe you, say so on the call. We'd rather place nothing than place the wrong thing — and the surrender period makes an annuity a harder mistake to undo than most.
Not sure which of those you are?
Fifteen minutes with a licensed agent and you'll know. If it's not a fit, we'll say so.
Questions, answered straight
A licensed Minnesota agent, at a time you pick.