It's always a good idea to buy your annuity from one of the top annuity companies.
The success of your annuity plan depends on the financial stability and adequate reserves of the company that provides your plan.
How do you find the top annuity companies? It's relatively easy.
There are several companies that make it their business to examine annuity providers and place them in a ranking of best to worst.
Ratings Services: Ratings are useful when selecting an annuity company because you have to be sure that the company will be able to meet its long-term promise to provide you with lifetime income.
The top professional rating services include A.
M.
Best, Moody's Investors Service, Standard & Poor's, Fitch Inc.
, and Weiss Research.
These companies evaluate annuity providers and publish their findings online.
Each has a website that explains how they rate and the criteria they use in their ranking systems.
Each is a little different, so it pays to read their background information when checking the rankings.
The general areas examined to determine the status of an annuity firm include its ability to pay claims, its financial reserves, its financial history, and the overall soundness of its general account investments.
Annuity company ratings can be found tat the websites of the ratings services, or for a more detailed study, you can find copies of their rating reports at your local library.
Finding a Top Annuity Company: When looking for a top annuity provider, there are several things to examine.
First, compare the features and costs of the plans they offer, find their guaranteed minimum interest rates, ask about surrender charges and hidden feels, and determine what withdrawal provisions are applied in the company's plans.
Even when dealing with a top-ranked annuity firm, do not accept contract terms or conditions you don't understand or are uncomfortable with.
Before Buying An Annuity: While annuities are issued by insurance firms, these plans may also be bought from an insurance agent, bank, or stockbroker.
Regardless of the source, there are several things to consider before buying a plan.
As already mentioned, check out the seller.
Investments in annuities are not guaranteed by the federal government, so the financial history and stability of the seller are of utmost importance.
Use one of the ratings services to get an overall picture.
Then compare the contracts that are offered to you.
For example, in a variable annuity, check the past investment performance of the funds associated with it.
If you do your homework and use the ratings services to help with your evaluation, it will not be difficult to find the top annuity companies and achieve your investment goals.