Nearly nine out of 10 annuity owners are confident about their lifestyle in retirement, according to a recent LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute study. It’s not the first or only such research survey finding, but annuity marketers wholesalers should welcome it.
Mass-affluent households ($100,000 to $499,000 in investable assets) and affluent households ($500,000 to $999,000) households showed the highest confidence.
Those two categories account for 79% of the households in the survey. One third of mass-affluent households own an annuity and 38% of affluent households report annuity ownership.
While people often feel good about a financial product they own, said Jafor Iqbal, associate managing director, LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute, with annuities there is a twist.
“Our findings challenge the adage that annuities are ‘sold not bought,’” he said in a release. “Investors know about annuity features and go into the process with a positive attitude which directly influences the purchase decision.”
Among households with more than $1 million in assets, 44% percent of annuity owners say they are “very confident” of a secure retirement compared to 35% of non-annuity owners. The survey was conducted among 2,000 consumers age 50 and older with at least $100,000 in investible assets.
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