Enhanced Annuity Options and Features

Enhanced Annuity Guide…

Aside from the fact that they guarantee an income for life, the next best thing about annuities is that they offer a lot of flexibility, allowing you to choose from several options and features to make it suit your needs to a tee.

The same is true with enhanced annuities. While an enhanced annuity may not be as flexible as the standard life annuity, it still has enough options and features for you to personalize your plan.

For example, you can choose:

- between Joint And Single – If you wish to provide for a spouse or another dependant, you can opt for a joint enhanced annuity which will ensure that that other person will continue receiving income after you die, though keep in mind that this will result in lower rates for you.

- between monthly, quarterly, twice-a-year or annual payments – The less frequent the payment, the higher the amount.

- the exact payment date, or whether at the end or at the beginning of a certain period

- how your income will increase – Like other types of annuities, an enhanced annuity can be fixed or escalating. If you opt for the latter, which is recommended to cover inflation rates, you can arrange for the rates to increase by a certain percentage each year or in line with the RPI or Retail Prices Index.

You can also avail of:

- Death Benefit – Basically, this feature pays out your remaining income to your dependent after your death, either in lump sum or periodic payments. The less income you take out during your lifetime, the greater the benefit will be to your dependent.

- Stepped-up Death Benefit – This feature allows you to ‘lock in’ the value of your annuity during a specific time period, which can guarantee your dependant a high return even if the value of your annuity has declined. Unlike the regular death benefit, though, this comes at an extra fee, and is not offered by all companies.

- Guaranteed Minimum – You can choose to receive a guaranteed minimum amount for a period of up to ten years.

- Long-term Care Insurance – This covers expenses for your health care, whether at your own home or in a nursing home, in case it becomes required. Again, not all providers offer this.

- A tax-free lump sum – You can withdraw up to 25% of your annuity as a lump sum at the start of your annuitization.

To see if you qualify for an enhanced annuity rate please fill in our free no-obligation annuity form. Indeed, by taking a few seconds to provide us with some information, we can arrange for an annuity adviser to contact you and give you free quotes and advice on how to find the best annuity rates.