Utilizing asset-based tools to save for retirement is a great supplement to income annuities. Find out the four ways you can accumulate additional assets. 

Non-Guaranteed Retirement Income Strategies

Unsure of the best way to save for retirement during your working years? There’s no right answer, but having a strategy and knowing of the available saving vehicles doesn’t hurt. 


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4 Smart Retirement Decisions During Your Working Years

A classic, good annuity is one that provides guaranteed income for as long as you live. It’s a way to diversify your portfolio, and make sure that your basic retirement expenses will be covered. But beware of market-based annuities that promise too much and don't deliver good value.

Good Annuities

Understanding your current habits can give you insight into your healthy life in retirement. These calculators can help you project what you can do now to ensure a comfortable retirement later. 

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Tools to Estimate Your Longevity

Financial Literacy 

Why is financial literacy important?

Forty years ago, living until 100 was extremely unlikely. Thanks to new research, here’s how the human lifespan will continue increasing. 

Will We All Live to Be 100?

When it comes to the fountain of longevity, the question remains: to drink or not to drink? The net result? It may surprise you.

Longevity: To Drink or Not to Drink?

Social Security, has been providing Americans with guaranteed income throughout retirement for years. Here’s how the program works and when you can claim your Social Security benefits.

Financial Products for Longevity: Social Security

Should I Invest in an Annuity?

Should I Put My Money in an Annuity?

A fixed annuity provides a safe, tax-advantaged way to earn a good return on savings needed in the near future, similar to a CD. We’ve created this quick checklist so you can know if a fixed annuity is a good fit for you.

Should You Buy a Fixed Annuity?

Taxation has a large impact on your retirement preparedness. Developing a plan to handle the differing rules and regulations on various types of retirement income is an important step to effectively plan for retirement. This article provides an overview of taxation on retirement income and links to resources that will help you understand taxes in retirement and make the decisions that are right for you.

Taxes in Retirement

The Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act of 2018 (RESA) may finally encourage retirement plan sponsors to add annuities to their 401(k) plans. Certain provisions may promote retirement savings by encouraging annuitizations among plan participants.


Can the Retirement Enhancement Savings Act (RESA) Encourage Companies to Get on the Annuity Bandwagon?

An annuity is a way to turn your savings into guaranteed income you can’t outlive, no matter what happens in the market or how long you live.

Fixed and Income Annuities Overview

Preparing for retirement can be challenging but new technology is making it easier to prepare, plan and manage retirement. Using technology can lower fees, provide better education and access to new opportunities

Use Technology to Address These 3 Retirement Challenges

We've expanded our real-time income annuity calculator to include Period Certain annuities. Unlike other income annuities, Period Certain annuities are not life contingent. 

Real-Time Period Certain Quotes Now Available on Blueprint Income

The average human lifespan is increasing, but what does that really mean? We’ve compiled a list of the most significant facts on longevity. 

The Data on Longer Lives

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help you enjoy your retirement. Here’s what you can do to stay on track. 

4 Ways to Live Longer

Early in our careers, we think about retirement in terms of assets, but as we get closer to actually retiring, it’s important to shift and focus on income. Why? Assets run out. Lifetime income doesn’t.


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Planning for Retirement with Income and Assets

An income annuity isn’t a good fit for everyone. Use the following strategies if an annuity isn’t the best fit for your retirement saving plan.

Preparing for Retirement If an Annuity Doesn't Make Sense

Research suggests that there is a relationship between parent and offspring longevity. Environmental factors play a role as well.

Do Your Family Genes Impact Longevity?

We aren’t fortune tellers, but with good data we can make predictions for the future. Here we answer the question “how long will I live?” by analyzing data.

How Long Will I Live?

Retirement is a time for you to live life to the fullest. We created a quick checklist of what you can do to stay ahead of your health and saving to-dos. 

The 5 Things to Add to Your Longevity Action Plan

With a longer retirement you can take the time to explore your interests and hobbies. Unsure of what that may look like? Here are four opportunities you’ll have during retirement

4 Big Opportunities with Longer Retirements

Women tend to live longer and therefore need to prepare more for retirement. And, with most couples, women aren’t very involved in retirement planning. 


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5 Challenges Women Face in Retirement

The recent bull market has been an attractive place for investors looking to generate sizable returns on their investment. Ongoing speculation of a potential market downturn in 2018 is now leaving investors with the challenge of finding a way to protect their recent gains.  

Taking Gains off the Table

To make the process of buying an annuity as seamless as possible, prepare to go through the following steps and be familiar with the following terminology. In addition to providing free, real-time annuity quotes, Blueprint Income will take care of the rest of the annuity buying process for you.

Ready to Buy an Annuity? Here's How the Process Works

As you get closer to retirement and continue working towards your saving goals, it’s important to incorporate a plan for your retirement spending. Here’s how you can start thinking about it. 


Staying on Track for Retirement in Your 50s

Figure out if you've saved enough to support your retirement with Blueprint Income's 'Can I Retire' tool.

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Can I Retire?

It’s just as important to have a plan for spending money as it is for saving it. Here’s what you need to know. 


Utilizing a Retirement Decumulation Strategy

If one's goal is to avoid running out of money in retirement while leaving the largest possible legacy behind at death, then income annuities play a crucial role. In Blueprint Income's recent white paper, we demonstrate that portfolios made up of just stocks and annuities produce the best outcomes.

Optimizing a Retirement Portfolio Using Annuities

The habits that help us build our retirement nest-egg also prevent us from spending as much as we can in retirement. Annuities can help solve this challenge of underconsumption in retirement. 


Annuities Can Solve the Retirement Spending Dilemma

Couple on laptop

Are Annuities Insured?

A flattening yield curve (one where the difference between short-term and long-term Treasury yields is smaller than usual) suggests two annuity buying strategies. Either buy a fixed rate annuity now, and wait for rates to rise before buying an income annuity. Or, start buying income now but do so in small pieces over time.

The Yield Curve Is Flattening - Here's What It Means for Annuities

Retirement today isn’t what it used to be. A new retirement landscape demands a fresh approach to thinking about and planning for retirement. 


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3 Retirement Questions You'll Need to Address

The 4% rule is a general rule of thumb to guide how much you can withdraw from your investments. Here’s how it works.

The 4% Rule

Bonds and income annuities have unique features that make them important components of your retirement portfolio. Understanding the role each plays in preparing for retirement can help you optimize the conservative, or safe, portion of your portfolio.

Comparing Bonds and Income Annuities for Retirement

Annuity adoption is less than would be expected in traditional economic models, as economists have shown that purchasing an annuity can lead to higher retirement income than a self-managed portfolio. Reframing annuities as a mechanism to improve consumption in retirement can improve utilization of annuity products. 

Can We Solve the Annuity Puzzle by Reframing Annuities?

As the average lifespan increases, understanding human longevity is essential. These companies are focusing on your personal future and what longevity means in the long run. 

3 Companies Revolutionizing Longevity Research

Planning for your retirement can be broken down into three primary objectives: liquidity, growth, and income. There are different financial products to use to meet each of those needs.

Finding the Right Financial Product for Your Retirement Objectives

Unforeseen healthcare costs are commonly overlooked in retirement planning. Here’s how you can anticipate these expenses. 


Managing Healthcare Costs in Retirement

The rise of the 401(k) and the corresponding decline of defined benefit pension plans upended the three-legged stool model for retirement savings, leading to retirement insecurity. Blueprint Income is working to restore the broken leg of the stool by offering easy access to compare and purchase annuities.

How to Restore the Three-Legged Retirement Stool

Staying on track with your retirement goals is important. Here’s what you can do to make sure that you do so during your 40s.


Staying On Track for Retirement in Your 40s

Should I Put My 401(k) into an Annuity?

Household spending generally drops at retirement and then continues to decline throughout retirement. Here’s how people’s spending changes the most and how it can effect your saving plan. 

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How Your Spending Changes in Retirement

People tend to think of technology as an exclusively millennial playing field. But don’t be fooled, there’s plenty of simple tech tools available to enhance how you manage your personal finances, particularly for retirement.

Using Technology to Improve Your Retirement

The average human lifespan is increasing, and with that retirement is too. It’s important to consider these three questions so you don’t outlive your savings during retirement. 

Announcing Our Series on Longevity

The answers to important questions when buying a fixed annuity.


Tips When Buying a Fixed Annuity

There are many features you can add to your fixed annuity so it best fits your needs. We’ve broken down the options you can select to customize your fixed annuity.

Customizing Your Fixed Annuity

History of Retirement (& Future Outlook)

Living to 100: Financial Security Implications

With retirement approaching, reviewing your goals will ensure that you are on track for retirement. Here’s a quick checklist of the what you should be doing to prepare during your 60s.

Staying on Track for Retirement in Your 60s

After working and saving for so many years, it’s finally time to retire. Here’s a quick to-do list to make sure you’ve done everything to prepare.


How You Can Prepare for Retirement During Your 70s

The most prevalent retirement options today present a great risk: you could outlive them. Here we present five retirement options you can't outlive.

Retirement Options To Not Outlive Your Retirement Savings

Getting ahead of retirement planning can help you achieve your goals sooner. Our retirement planning tips for millennials give quick and easy suggestions for people in their 20s and 30s. One thing to be most aware of: retirement is more complicated without a pension.


Retirement Planning Tips for Millennials

Should I Annuitize My Annuity?

Higher life expectancies mean longer retirements. It’s important to consider these tools and strategies to ensure that you don’t outlive your retirement savings.

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Smart Planning for a Long Retirement

An annuity is a lifetime income guarantee that you purchase from an insurance company, who is overseen by state-based guaranty funds that insurers your annuity purchases. In this article, we discuss this important protection, as well as provide some helpful resources that you should be aware of.

State Guaranty Associations for Annuity Contracts

401(k)s have become the predominant way to prepare for retirement, which leaves retirement savings exposed to market volatility. As a result, we are more sensitive to changes and drops in the markets. Knowing how stock market drops affect your retirement means it's important to protect your investments from movements in the market. 

How Stock Market Drops Affect Your Retirement

A longevity annuity is like a pension you can buy for yourself from an insurance company using your pre-tax or post-tax retirement savings, generating a guaranteed income that lasts as long as you do. It’s a great way to diversify your portfolio, and make sure that all, or most, of your basic retirement expenses will be covered for as long as you live.

Planning

RETIREMENT PLANNING

Non-Guaranteed Retirement Income Strategies

RETIREMENT PLANNING

4 Smart Retirement Decisions During Your Working Years

ANNUITIES 101

Good Annuities

RETIREMENT PLANNING

Tools to Estimate Your Longevity

RETIREMENT INCOME

Why is financial literacy important?

RETIREMENT PLANNING

Will We All Live to Be 100?

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