RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS
Retirement may seem far away, but it’s never too early to determine how much you’ll need and to begin the process of saving. Making smart financial decisions now can help impact how you live in retirement. We can assist you along the way with our Individual Retirement Account (IRA) program—it’s designed to help you reach your retirement goals.
An IRA is a tax-deferred personal savings account that allows you to save for retirement without a company-sponsored plan. Throughout your lifetime, you can make tax-deductible “contributions” to your IRA, which you can then invest in basic securities such as stocks and bonds. For 2017, the annual amount you can contribute to an IRA is the lesser of 100% of earned compensation or $5,500. If you are age 50 or older (as of December 31 of the tax year to which the contribution relates), you are eligible to contribute an annual “catch-up” contribution each year of up to $1,000.
Traditional IRA Accounts
The most common type of IRA—income taxes are deferred until you withdraw them, so you don’t pay annual federal (and, in many cases, state) income taxes on your earnings. At age 59 ½, you can make taxable withdrawals from the account called distributions for your
retirement. If you choose to take distributions before you turn 59 ½ years old, the government imposes a premature distribution penalty of 10% on your withdrawal. Additionally, when you turn 70 ½ years old, you are required to take distributions by April 1 of the calendar year.
Roth IRA Account
Unlike the traditional IRA, contributions to the Roth IRA are considered “after-tax” and therefore not deductible, but you can take
distributions from the Roth IRA tax-free. The maximum annual contribution to the Roth IRA for 2017 is $5,500, with an additional $1,000 “catch up” contribution allowed each year for individuals age 50 and older (as of December 31 of the tax year to which the
contribution relates).
ANNUITIES
People are living longer and that means more time and savings will be spent in retirement. If you need a tax-deferred investment to provide a guaranteed1 stream of income for life or a specified number of years, it might be worth considering an annuity. An annuity is a contract between an insurance company and an annuity owner. In exchange for a purchase payment, or series of payments, the insurance company guarantees1 to pay a stream of income in the future.
There are two types of annuities—Immediate and Deferred.
Immediate Annuities
An immediate annuity is usually purchased with a single premium and begins a stream of income within the first 12 months from the date of issue. You decide when payments will begin within that period and how long to receive income. There are two types of immediate
annuities: fixed and variable.
Deferred Annuities
A deferred annuity is specifically designed to help accumulate assets for retirement. It also offers the ability to turn those assets into a guaranteed stream of income at some point in the future. You decide when payments begin and how long to receive income. There are basically two types of deferred annuities: fixed and variable.
