Retirement

Twenty-three percent of middle-class IRA remained undecided in October about converting to an IRA, according to a study by First Command, a financial-education firm.

When the Departments of Labor and Treasury sent out an RFI on annuities as a retirement savings vehicle in 401(k) plans earlier this year, Allianz Life Financial Services was one of 800 respondents.

If there was any doubt, the October 2010 401kExchange Opportunity Indices (reporting the percentage of plans that indicate they are currently searching for or thinking of changing recordkeepers, funds or advisers) definitively show that DC plan sponsors are much more concerned about finding the right adviser than changing their funds or recordkeepers.

Recent events and trends have thrust the topic of lifetime income products for retirement plans into the limelight. Retirements among the leading edge of Baby Boomers, medical advances increasing Americans' longevity, the market swoon of 2008 and continuing volatility in the financial markets have all contributed to a consensus that today's workers need options for their defined contribution plans that mimic the retirement income benefits of a defined benefit plan.

Legg Mason recently announced it has formed the Legg Mason Retirement Advisory Council, comprised of 14 industry leaders who will meet quarterly to discuss major challenges facing retirement products, service provides and best practices.

The economy might be making a slow return to health, but for many baby boomers, that upturn cannot happen fast enough.

According to a new LIMRA’s Guaranteed Income Annuities report, women buy six of every 10 immediate annuity contracts, a significant chunk of the $250 billion annuitization market.

The likelier an event, the less profitable it is to insure. So when MetLife backed out of selling long-term care insurance, it sent a signal that the risk of needing expensive medical care in old age has increased.

College savings funds have slashed fees this year, Morningstar reports, making them worth another look. Nebraska's College Savings Plan and plans run by Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and Vanguard all cut fees this year.

Imagine this: An entire generation of investors has accumulated a significant amount of investable cash, but was too apprehensive of the stock market, of advisers, and of the potential costs, to know how to invest the money.