The Income Lesson · 9 Minutes
What pays you every month when your paycheck stops?
A 9-minute plain-English lesson on the Income Floor Method: how retirees turn part of what they saved into monthly income they can count on, and how to know whether an annuity belongs in that picture at all.
Built for households within about ten years of retirement with $100,000 or more saved. If that is not you yet, the lesson is yours anyway.
About two minutes. Complimentary. You keep your Income Floor Worksheet either way.
One lesson, captions burned in. The fit check below is open the whole time.
Prefer to skip ahead? Check your fit now.
Prefer to listen? The audio version lives at /income/listen.
Annuity guarantees are backed by the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurer. Not FDIC insured. Not a bank deposit.
See what you get
The Income Floor Worksheet, before you ever talk to anyone.
Your advisor prepares this one page before your call. It is yours to keep either way.
-
01
Your income gap, on paper.
What has to arrive every month, stacked against what is already guaranteed to.
-
02
Whether an annuity fits at all.
Including “no.” If it is not the right tool for your numbers, that is what you hear.
-
03
The worksheet, yours to keep.
Walked through line by line, either way, with no obligation.
Complimentary. No obligation. You keep your Income Floor Worksheet either way.
The Income Floor Method
Four parts. Each with one job.
Total what has to arrive
Add up the must-cover monthly expenses: the ones that show up whether the market is up or down.
Stack what is already guaranteed
Social Security, and a pension if there is one, set against that monthly number.
Close the gap with income that lasts
Whatever is left gets closed with income designed to last as long as you do.
Let the rest keep growing
Everything not needed for the floor stays invested, working toward growth.
A fair note about annuities
Annuities are not for everyone.
That is not a disclaimer buried in fine print. It is the first thing worth knowing, said plainly and up front.
Surrender periods
They limit access to your money for a set number of years. Read that schedule before anything else.
Liquidity
Money placed into an annuity is not as reachable as money in a savings account. Plan around that, not around hope.
Caps and participation vary
These terms differ widely by product and by carrier. No single number applies to all of them.
Insurer strength matters
Every guarantee rests on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurer, which is why who issues the contract matters as much as what it says.
Annuity guarantees are not FDIC insured and are not a bank deposit. If an annuity is not right for you, that is exactly what you will hear.
What happens on the call
Thirty minutes. Three things covered. No script.
- 01
Your income gap, on paper
Walked through against the worksheet your advisor prepared before the call.
- 02
Whether an annuity fits at all
Including the carrier comparison, walked through live, and the honest “no” when that is the answer.
- 03
Your worksheet, yours to keep
One page, plain English, no obligation either way.
The advisor calls your phone.
Not the other way around. Pick a time, and someone calls you at that time.
Is this a sales call? No.
Your advisor is a licensed insurance producer, compensated by insurers, and will say so plainly. Nothing is sold on this call.
What does it cost?
Nothing. The session is complimentary, and the worksheet is yours to keep whether or not an annuity fits.
Two honest outcomes
Either this fits your numbers, or it does not.
For a couple retiring today, there is roughly a one-in-two chance one spouse lives past ninety. That is a long time for savings to hold up on their own, and exactly the kind of question an income floor exists to answer. Knowing either answer is worth thirty minutes.
Check my fitComplimentary. No obligation. You keep your Income Floor Worksheet either way.