Insurance Life Blog

Joan Aragone: Be careful of direct mailings

2010-06-07T07:28:00.000-07:00

It's nice to be popular. Or is it?

I recently received at my home an innocuous-looking postcard mailing — one of those tear-off-and-mail-the-attached-card formats — announcing itself as an update on California long-term care.

Printed in black and white with a prepaid postage return, it looked official, as though the state were sending me information I needed to know.

An anonymous message — no name or government agency was identified — said that new legislation would limit my access to government-paid long-term care. Thus, I needed to provide long-term care insurance for myself. For more information, all I had to do was provide my signature and phone number and birth dates for myself and my spouse...

Mercury News: Joan Aragone: Be careful of direct mailings

A look at how people pay for retirement

2010-06-04T04:44:00.000-07:00

Retirement planning isn't about "the number," but the numbers -- your assets, liabilities, expenses, and income. The more you know about those numbers, the more likely your retirement plan will become a reality instead of a pipe dream.

And a new report will help you get a better handle on at least one of those numbers: income. The average retiree depends on four sources of income in retirement, according to the latest study from the Employee Benefit Research Institute...

MarketWatch: A look at how people pay for retirement

I-Team: Annuity Lawsuit Update (Video)

2010-06-04T04:43:00.000-07:00

A judge has dismissed some claims against a Cranston lawyer involved in a controversial annuities program...

Turn to 10: I-Team: Annuity Lawsuit Update (Video)

New York Eyes Annuity Withdrawal Disclosures

2010-06-04T04:42:00.001-07:00

The New York State Insurance Department is drafting advice that would encourage annuity sellers to warn consumers about the dangers of taking early excess withdrawals.

Insurers that are selling annuities with guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit features should provide disclosure “in the sales presentation before the contract is issued and again at the time an excess withdrawal is requested,” Michael Maffei, chief of the New York department’s Life Bureau, writes in a draft circular letter posted on the department’s website...

National Underwriter: New York Eyes Annuity Withdrawal Disclosures

Franklin investor William Spencer pleads guilty in Ponzi scheme

2010-06-03T04:51:00.000-07:00

The former Franklin investment advisor accused of mail and wire fraud in connection with an alleged $1.5 million “Ponzi” scheme is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in federal court.

William W. Spencer, 68, entered his guilty plea May 28 before Judge William Haynes, according to court documents. The U.S. Attorney’s office for Middle Tennessee initially charged Spencer in April with six counts of mail fraud and five counts of wire fraud, alleging that from 1997 to 2009 he borrowed or solicited nearly $1.9 million from about 100 friends, clients and investors...

Nashville BizJournals: Franklin investor William Spencer pleads guilty in Ponzi scheme

Judge Lets Claims Stand in Annuity Case

2010-06-03T04:47:00.000-07:00

A federal judge in Rhode Island let stand some civil legal claims by two insurance companies against an estate-planning attorney and others who used newspaper ads to recruit dozens of terminally ill people for purchases of variable annuities.

The judge, in U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I., in a Wednesday ruling let stand fraud, conspiracy and other claims against the estate-planning attorney, Joseph Caramadre, and others involved in the alleged scheme. But he dismissed other claims, ruling the insurers couldn't void the annuity contracts...

WSJ: Judge Lets Claims Stand in Annuity Case

Live long and prosper with annuities

2010-06-03T04:44:00.000-07:00

With the right genes, longevity insurance a plus

Among the many risks retirees face is living too long and outliving their money.

Of course, the first part is a risk many would welcome. It beats the alternative.

Fortunately, there is a solution in longevity insurance, better known as annuities or life annuities. These are contractual arrangements between an "annuitant" -- yourself -- and a life insurance company. In exchange for a chunk of capital paid to the insurer, a life annuity guarantees you payments for life -- even if you live to be 120 or more...

Montreal Gazette: Live long and prosper with annuities

We Need A Fiduciary Standard For All

2010-06-02T04:51:00.001-07:00

Brokers and registered investment advisors don't treat their clients the same way. Investors should end "buyer beware."

All advisors should be held to the same code of conduct. Most investors assume that they can trust their financial advisors to act in their best interest. What they don't know is that some advisors are legally required to act for them while others are not. The financial reform act is giving us the first chance since 1940 to plug this loophole and make all advisors act according to the fiduciary standard...

Forbes:

DOL should not regulate generally accepted investment theories, employer groups say

2010-06-02T04:49:00.000-07:00

Employer groups, responding to the Labor Department's proposed investment advice regulations on May 5, 2010, said that the DOL should not attempt to regulate what constitutes "generally accepted investment theories."

In the proposed investment advice rules, which were issued in March 2010, the DOL made a request for public comment on the conditions applicable to investment advice arrangements that use computer models. Specifically, the DOL sought comments on whether final regulations should: require (or proscribe) the use of specified investment theories and practices; specify minimum standards (e.g., minimum number of years of experience) for historical data that is taken into account in determining a model's expectation for the future performance of asset classes and specific investment alternatives; or expressly designate the criteria that are appropriate and objective bases for asset allocation...

CCH: DOL should not regulate generally accepted investment theories, employer groups say

Advisors Expanding Retirement Income Offerings, Survey Finds

2010-06-02T04:45:00.000-07:00

Polarized attitudes toward annuities remain; more focus on risk

A new survey further confirms the growth opportunity for advisors from focusing on retirement income products and strategies. However, the report also notes heightened concern among brokers and RIAs with managing investment risk for investors.

The Continued Evolution of Retirement Income Delivery: An Analysis of Leading Practices in Advisor Support was released Tuesday, June 1, from consulting and research firms GDC Research and Practical Perspectives. It finds that 63% of advisors have experienced net growth in the past year in serving retirement income clients. Advisors are also finding baby boomer clients receptive to consolidating relationships. Moreover,while 91% of advisors believe they have the abilities to effectively serve new retirees, practitioners across channels are increasingly wary of how to manage investment risk for retirement income clients...

Investment Advisor: Advisors Expanding Retirement Income Offerings, Survey Finds

Living And Death Benefit Riders: How Do They Work

2010-06-02T04:44:00.000-07:00

The annuity contracts that were first offered by insurance carriers over a century ago were relatively simple instruments. They were designed to insure the risk of superannuation, or outliving one's income, and provided a guaranteed income stream to annuitants in return for either a lump-sum or periodic investment. But annuity contracts have become increasingly complex over the years...

SF Gate: Living And Death Benefit Riders: How Do They Work

Answers on Credit Ratings Are Long Overdue

2010-06-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

Raise your hand if you can explain why anyone still believes in credit ratings.

One of the enduring questions of the financial crisis is how the credit ratings establishment got so much so wrong for so very long. How could century-old institutions like the Moody’s Investors Service give their triple-A blessings to subprime junk?

It is time — in fact, past time — for Washington to get some answers. Because despite talk of a shake-up, the companies that dominate the ratings business hope to avoid the radical overhaul their critics are calling for...

Yahoo! Finance: Answers on Credit Ratings Are Long Overdue

Northwestern Mutual's next CEO gets it

2010-06-01T05:12:00.000-07:00

Schlifske's mandate: Keep doing the right thing, don't mess with success

With the company he's poised to run already financially sound and top-rated in its industry, John E. Schlifske knows there's no need to come in and shake things up.

"I view my emergence as the new CEO as just another chapter in the same book," said Schlifske, who officially was elected last week to succeed Edward J. Zore as chief executive of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. on July 1...

JS Online: Northwestern Mutual's next CEO gets it

Pension funds bet on death through life settlements

2010-06-01T05:11:00.000-07:00

Allegheny and Westmoreland counties are trying to reduce their pension funds' exposure to the volatile stock market through a relatively new type of investment based on life insurance policies.

The two governments' modest investments in life settlements -- buying and selling the rights to the death benefits paid by life insurance policies covering wealthy individuals -- is not common in the pension fund world, where real estate, hedge funds, private equity and other alternative investments have been mainstays for years...

Post-Gazette: Pension funds bet on death through life settlements

Planners claim small victory in financial-reform legislation

2010-06-01T04:38:00.000-07:00

GAO planning study would bring recognition on Hill, they say

A small provision buried in both the House and Senate versions of financial-reform legislation is being hailed by some as a modest but important step for the financial planning industry.

That provision calls for the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, to conduct a study on the oversight of financial planning. Although many planning advocates are pushing for regulation of their profession, the call for a study — and recognition on Capitol Hill that would go with it — is viewed by many as a step in the right direction...

Investment News: Planners claim small victory in financial-reform legislation

Insurance: Comparing long-term care features in life policies

2010-05-28T05:07:00.001-07:00

Question: I am a man in my mid-sixties. You recently have been discussing a life-insurance policy that has a long-term-care feature. My agent has given me two different proposals illustrating this type of policy. What is the difference and which is better? ...

Cincinnati: Insurance: Comparing long-term care features in life policies

Show Me the Money

2010-05-28T05:02:00.000-07:00

Nielsen Financial uncovers what different kinds of wealthy clients typically buy and need.

All advisors want to work with wealthy clients, but targeting them is a challenge because every other advisor is pitching for the same business. Winners in this space go into a meeting with a high-net-worth prospect knowing roughly what kinds of services that prospect is likely to buy.

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To take some of the guesswork out of it, research firm Nielsen Financial analyzed the investment trends of the wealthy and found that rich people fall into different brackets based on their interests and geography. Nielsen tracks as many as 15 unique customer segments, but there are at least four that advisors should be aware of in prospecting and expanding their business relationship with clients. For example, if you have a client who fits a described demographic, but only has a fraction of his money in annuities that the average suggests, perhaps it's time to dig deeper into the client's needs...

Bank Investment Consultant: Show Me the Money

A New Dynamic

2010-05-28T04:59:00.000-07:00

Variable annuity sales fell in 2009 as incentives to stay put in existing contracts choked off exchange growth.

New variable annuity sales rose 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2009, although they were down 3.8% from the previous fourth quarter. Year-over-year, new sales plummeted almost 19%, from $151.6 billion in 2008 to $123.1 billion in 2009. That's the lowest annual new sales figure since 2002, when sales reached $112.4 billion after bottoming out at just over $107 billion in 2001...

Financial Planning: A New Dynamic

Annuities After the Deluge

2010-05-28T04:45:00.001-07:00

Insurers are simplifying variable annuities to reduce risk and cut costs, but most investors still want living benefits.

Annuities saw the best of times (for clients) and the worst of times (for insurers) when the safety features kicked in during 2008. Insurers convinced they sold their guarantees too cheaply have rushed to repair the damage.

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They are doing this in two ways. Some are stripping back the fancy features that proliferated in the past by offering simpler, cheaper products that carry less risk for insurers. Others continue to offer fancy bells and whistles, but at a slightly higher price...

Bank Investment Consultant: Annuities After the Deluge

Cash refund for life insurance

2010-05-27T05:47:00.000-07:00

A new cash refund option will be made available through Symetra Life Insurance for its income annuity products, according to the insurer.

With the cash refund option, once the annuity owner dies, the beneficiary is able to get one lump sum that is equivalent to the unrecovered purchase payment, Symetra said. The annuity will be paid out no matter what the circumstance may be, ensuring a certain monetary amount...

US Insurance Online: Cash refund for life insurance

Couple charged with life insurance fraud

2010-05-27T05:34:00.001-07:00

A Florida couple have been charged with an insurance swindle involving the burial of a man they knew under a false name.

Laura Freed, 43, and Michael Petro, 40, were arrested Sunday, the Orlando Sentinel reported. They have been released on $125,000 bail.

Investigators say Freed and Petro took out an insurance policy on the life of Racko Petro in 1998. In 2005, Billy Urich, 59, was admitted to Heart of Florida Regional Medical Center as the 34-year-old Racko and died there of kidney failure...

UPI: Couple charged with life insurance fraud

Life insurance outlook once again stable

2010-05-27T05:32:00.004-07:00

The insurance industry has moved its outlook from negative to stable, according to Moody's Industry Report.

As the economy begins to stabilize, so does the life insurance business, Moody's Investors Service said. Trends signaling the upswing of the market include higher stock prices, improved employment numbers, and more consumer spending. Life insurers are expected to soon see an improvement in net profits along with operating and investment incomes...

InsuranceCorner: Life insurance outlook once again stable

Fed Is Confident of AIG Payback, but Skeptics Remain

2010-05-27T05:32:00.001-07:00

Federal overseers of American International Group Inc. and its chief executive sought to convince a skeptical congressional panel that the U.S. would recoup the record sum extended in the AIG bailout.

Federal Reserve officials said they are increasingly confident the government-controlled insurer will repay what it owes the central bank, but their Treasury Department counterparts appeared less certain...

WSJ: Fed Is Confident of AIG Payback, but Skeptics Remain

Jackson National Life picks Cool Springs for new facility, 750 jobs

2010-05-26T05:16:00.001-07:00

Middle Tennessee beats out more than 40 sites

A Michigan-based insurance company will open a new regional headquarters in Cool Springs and plans to create up to 750 jobs during the next three years.

Jackson National Life Insurance Company officials announced Tuesday that they have signed a long-term lease to occupy One Greenway Centre, a 150,000-square-foot office building near Nissan North American Headquarters in Franklin. The company plans to bring 400 people there by January and continue expanding its workforce through 2013...

Tennessean: Jackson National Life picks Cool Springs for new facility, 750 jobs

Related: Jackson National denies rumors of HQ move.

Canadian Banks Gain Record Edge Over Insurers as Markets Tumble

2010-05-26T05:14:00.001-07:00

Investors in Canadian financial stocks are favoring banks over insurers more than at any other time in 22 years, rewarding lenders for avoiding the worst of the credit crisis and punishing insurers for their U.S. losses...

Business Week: Canadian Banks Gain Record Edge Over Insurers as Markets Tumble

Universal Life Sales Return to 2005 Levels, LIMRA Says

2010-05-26T05:12:00.000-07:00

Sales of universal life insurance policies increased by 17% in the first quarter compared to a year earlier, returning universal life production to first quarter 2005 levels, according to insurance research firm LIMRA...

LifeSettlementsWire: Universal Life Sales Return to 2005 Levels, LIMRA Says

Denver-area investment advisor Jackson gets 15 years for Ponzi scheme

2010-05-26T04:41:00.001-07:00

Denver-area investment adviser Mark J. Jackson was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for running a $32 million Ponzi scheme.

Jackson, 55, earlier this year had pled guilty to a felony charge of racketeering in a scheme that swindled investors with promises of guaranteed returns on stock trading...

Denver Post: Denver-area investment advisor Jackson gets 15 years for Ponzi scheme

FINRA bars Georgia man for stealing from client’s variable annuity

2010-05-26T04:39:00.001-07:00

A registered financial representative from Martinez, Ga., was barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) after he improperly took money from a client’s variable annuity.

Alvin Charles Ramsey served as a registered representative for an elderly customer, who executed a power of attorney, giving Ramsey broad authority over his financial affairs, FINRA records show...

IFA Web News: FINRA bars Georgia man for stealing from client’s variable annuity

State regulators scrutinize Annuity scams

2010-05-26T04:36:00.000-07:00

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) held a public hearing last week on the emergence of Stranger Originated/Owned Annuities. The hearing, hosted by the NAIC Life Insurance and Annuities Committee, focused on the suspect practice of targeting seniors and terminally ill patients by inducing them to purchase an annuity largely for the benefit of investors or intermediaries.

Robert Mizzoni, an 83-year old from Cranston, Rhode Island, told regulators how he and his wife were victims of an annuities scam. Federal prosecutors are currently investigating a Rhode Island attorney who placed ads in church newspapers offering immediate cash to individuals with terminal illness. The attorney’s goal was to take advantage of the death benefit built into many variable annuities...

NorwalkPlus: State regulators scrutinize Annuity scams

Jackson National denies rumors of HQ move from Lansing

2010-05-25T05:03:00.001-07:00

Jackson National Life Insurance Co. said Monday it has no plans to move its headquarters out of Lansing.

Several published reports said the insurance giant, which has a tax-sharing agreement with the city of Lansing but headquarters at Interstate 96 and Okemos Road in Alaieidon Township, planned to announce today it is relocating to Franklin, Tenn., near Nashville...

Lansing State Journal: Jackson National denies rumors of HQ move from Lansing

Annuity Outlook Positive Despite Decline in Sales

2010-05-25T04:57:00.000-07:00

Despite a significant decline in sales in the past years, advisors and industry executives remain upbeat about annuities because the products are expected to protect principal and provide retirement income.

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According to a survey conducted in the first quarter by the Insured Retirement Institute released Monday the overall outlook for the annuity industry is positive. While some challenges remain, respondents indicated the growth industry’s opportunities are strong, with growth for variable annuities ranking 4.1 on a five-point scale, and fixed ranking 3.2 on the same scale...

Bank Investment Consultant: Annuity Outlook Positive Despite Decline in Sales

Some Novel Ideas for Improving Retirement Income

2010-05-24T13:38:00.003-07:00

Employees have increasingly been forced over the last few decades to take responsibility for ensuring they have enough savings to last through retirement. But many of them are making inadequate saving decisions and finding themselves facing financial difficulty in retirement.

As a result, the Department of Labor and the Department of the Treasury are reviewing retirement plan rules to determine if the retirement security of participants could be enhanced with arrangements aimed at providing a lifetime stream of income after retirement. Earlier this year, the agencies put out a request for comments on the topic from the retirement plan industry and the general public...

Yahoo! Finance: Some Novel Ideas for Improving Retirement Income

American Council of Life Insurers "Very Concerned" About Aspects Of Finance Legislation

2010-05-24T05:49:00.000-07:00

In the post below, I wrote about the property-casualty industry being largely unaffected by two finance-reform bills in the House and Senate.

The American Council of Life Insurers, on the other hand, released this statement Friday from president Frank Keating:

"This is a long and complicated bill and its effects on the life insurance industry will not be clear until a final bill is adopted and the rulemaking process is complete...

Courant: American Council of Life Insurers "Very Concerned" About Aspects Of Finance Legislation

From an IVA, New Blood for Insurers

2010-05-24T05:41:00.000-07:00

Life insurers, advisors and consumers should embrace his immediate variable annuity (IVA) with a refund option and a death benefit, says Achaean Financial CEO Lorry Stensrud.

At a presentation a few years ago, Peng Chen, president of Ibbotson Associates, projected a slide that plotted the positions of several retirement income products on a risk/return diagram.

In the northwest corner of the chart, as lonely as Pluto on a black map of the solar system, stood the immediate variable annuity (IVA). All other factors held equal, the IVA's reward-to-risk ratio was highest. Yet no one ever buys it...

Retirement Income Journal: From an IVA, New Blood for Insurers

Inflation's Toll on Annuity Payouts

2010-05-24T05:29:00.000-07:00

The guaranteed payouts on immediate annuities offer insurance against the kinds of rocky times investors have been weathering of late. But retirees need to be sure the value of their investment doesn't get slowly whittled away by inflation...

WSJ: Inflation's Toll on Annuity Payouts

Accused Vancouver serial killer took out life insurance on victim: lawyer

2010-05-20T05:34:00.000-07:00

Accused serial killer Charles Kembo took out an $850,000 life insurance policy on his business partner just 10 weeks before he was murdered, B.C. Supreme Court heard Wednesday.

Crown counsel Hank Reiner told the Vancouver trial that Kembo forged Arden Samuel’s name on the lucrative policy — and declared that upon Samuel’s death the $850,000 policy payout should go directly to Kembo’s son Grant.

Kembo, he said, kept insurance inspectors from suspecting anything by listing Grant as Samuel’s “cousin” on the policy, which was signed, sealed and delivered without a personal visit to the insurance agency...

Montreal Gazette: Accused Vancouver serial killer took out life insurance on victim: lawyer

Fixed Annuity Sales Drop 51.9% in Year, IRI/Morningstar/Beacon Report Shows

2010-05-19T04:56:00.000-07:00

2010 data can’t match last year’s flight to safety, says Beacon chief in first-ever report

Fixed annuity sales plummeted 51.9% in the first quarter of 2010 compared to a year ago, the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) said in its first-ever quarterly annuity sales report, released Tuesday, May 18, with data provided by Morningstar Inc. and Beacon Research.

The 51.9% decline in year-to-year quarterly sales of fixed annuities reflected an $18 billion drop from $34.8 billion in the first quarter of 2009. Fixed annuity sales for the first quarter were about $16.7 billion, down from $19.6 billion as of December 31, 2009, representing a 14.7% quarterly decline...

Investment Advisor: Fixed Annuity Sales Drop 51.9% in Year, IRI/Morningstar/Beacon Report Shows

Tri-City financial adviser under fire

2010-05-19T04:53:00.000-07:00

A Tri-City financial adviser has been accused of violating the state's Securities Act by falsifying birth dates on annuity applications for elderly clients.

The state Department of Financial Institutions Securities Division has filed a statement of charges against Thomas Doncaster, claiming he violated the law and should have to pay a $65,000 fine plus investigation costs of more than $5,000...

News-Tribune: Tri-City financial adviser under fire

Feds get an earful on 401(k) proposal

2010-05-19T04:52:00.000-07:00

Vitriol over plan to let retirees buy annuities with savings

What happens when the government considers tinkering with retirement accounts and asks for citizen input?

It gets plenty.

Government officials began seeking comments in February on a proposal to add an annuity option to retirement plans. Such an option would potentially turn a portion of a retiree's savings over to an insurance company in exchange for a monthly check...

MSNBC: Feds get an earful on 401(k) proposal

Annuity Sales Show a Decline

2010-05-19T04:51:00.000-07:00

Annuity sales in the first quarter declined 27% from the year-ago period, but sales of variable annuities rose modestly, a sign that investors appear to be stepping back into the market...

Sales of annuities in the first quarter were $47.4 billion, down from $50.9 billion in the fourth quarter; they were down 27% from $64.4 billion in the first quarter of 2009, the group said...

WSJ: Annuity Sales Show a Decline

Fraud Alert

2010-05-18T07:27:00.001-07:00

Scam artists increasingly are targeting people trying to repair their nest eggs. Here's what to watch for.

Many investors in their 50s and 60s are desperate to bulk up their nest eggs. But they remain skittish about the stock market -- and are frustrated with low interest rates.

It's a combination that makes them especially susceptible to fraud. "Anybody who's even thinking about retiring is panicking because they're going to outlive their savings," says Joseph Borg, Alabama's top securities regulator. "Along comes a scam artist with a guaranteed, super-safe deal. It's a perfect storm..."

Yahoo! Finance: Fraud Alert

Lessons from Argentina on the Outcomes of a Possible Greek Default

2010-05-18T05:08:00.000-07:00

In the world of sovereign debt settlements, things have come a long way since Peru settled its 1889 default in part by offering creditors two million tons of guano. While making a great fertilizer, investors were understandably a little disappointed with this outcome. Luckily, the era of debt-restructuring via barter is long past and in its wake settlement terms and processes have rapidly evolved. The largest sovereign default in history, Argentina's in January 2002, is very close to being settled just 8 years and 5 short months later. Looking at the recent history of sovereign defaults gives some clues as to the outcome of a possible Greek restructuring/default, were it to happen, but leaves many questions unanswered...

Northern Trust: Lessons from Argentina on the Outcomes of a Possible Greek Default

AnnuitySpecs: Q1 Indexed Annuity Sales Off 4%

2010-05-18T04:46:00.000-07:00

Sales of indexed annuities fell slightly in the first quarter from the total for the first quarter of 2009, an annuity tracking service says. Sales amounted to $6.8 billion in the first quarter, according to AnnuitySpecs.com, Des Moines, Iowa.

That figure is down 4% from $7.1 billion in the comparable period in 2009, the firm says. First-quarter sales were also 3% lower than in the fourth quarter of 2009...

NU: AnnuitySpecs: Q1 Indexed Annuity Sales Off 4%

Plenty of takeaways at Retirement Income Summit

2010-05-17T05:19:00.000-07:00

When he was mayor of New York, Ed Koch often would ask constituents, “How am I doing?”

Taking a page from the mayor, I used the recent InvestmentNews Retirement Income Summit to ask attendees: “How are we doing?”

Having served as the editor of this publication for seven years, I have come to know that financial advisers aren't a shy bunch. So I directly asked what they had learned at the conference...

Investment News: Plenty of takeaways at Retirement Income Summit

Market wreckage may give insurers entree to 401(k)s

2010-05-17T04:57:00.001-07:00

Roiled stock markets have prompted a renewed look at the effectiveness of 401(k) savings plans for retirees – and the lucrative business prospects they could present for financial services companies...

BizJournals: Market wreckage may give insurers entree to 401(k)s

S&P warns on commercial real estate: Principal Financial, Pacific LifeCorp Downgraded

2010-05-14T05:39:00.000-07:00

Standard & Poor's downgraded three insurance companies, including Principal Financial (PFG), citing expected losses on commercial mortgages and commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS.

Thursday's downgrades come after an industry-wide review led the rating agency to focus on "several U.S. life companies with significant exposure to commercial mortgages and CMBS relative to total invested assets or potential losses relative to capital under stress scenarios."

Also getting downgraded Thursday were mutual insurers NLV, which is part of National Life Insurance, and Pacific LifeCorp, which runs Pacific Mutual and Pacific Life. They and Principal are now rated triple-B, the second-lowest investment grade rating...

Fortune: S&P warns on commercial real estate: Principal Financial, Pacific LifeCorp Downgraded

Teacher postcard mystery is solved

2010-05-14T04:56:00.000-07:00

The mystery took more than a month to solve. Somebody sent retired schoolteacher Louise Michael of Hurst a yellow postcard warning that her retirement savings are "at significant risk unless you ask soon to prevent it."

The postcard looked official...

Star-Telegram: Teacher postcard mystery is solved

Few Seniors Get Retirement Income Guarantees

2010-05-14T04:39:00.000-07:00

Most retirees don’t have a reliable source of income in retirement other than Social Security. Less than a quarter (24 percent) of men and 18 percent of women received any type of regular pension or annuity income in 2008, according to a new Employee Benefit Research Institute analysis of Census Bureau data...

USN&WR: Few Seniors Get Retirement Income Guarantees

Annuity insurers must move past variable product benefits

2010-05-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

So busy were individual annuity insurers at raising capital and increasing premium that they may need to take a new look at the products they are offering.

Stephan Christiansen, director of research at Conning Research and Consulting, said in a statement that insurers must move beyond variable annuities...

IFA Web News: Annuity insurers must move past variable product benefits

Sovereign ratings on UK, US, Japan under fire from credit investors

2010-05-13T06:47:00.000-07:00

After Greece, Portugal and Spain suffered rating downgrades in April due to escalating fiscal problems, investors ask if the same standards are being applied to advanced economies.

While there is a broad agreement among investors that credit rating agencies were justified in downgrading peripheral European sovereigns last month, investors are questioning why advanced economies such as the UK, the US and Japan – which face mounting fiscal problems of their own – have managed to retain their triple-A ratings...

Risk: Sovereign ratings on UK, US, Japan under fire from credit investors

Treasury 30-Year Yields Reach One-Week High Before Bond Auction

2010-05-13T05:56:00.000-07:00

Treasury 30-year yields were near the highest in more than a week as European plans to stem the region’s debt crisis and today’s $16 billion auction of U.S. bonds eroded demand for the safest securities...

BusinessWeek: Treasury 30-Year Yields Reach One-Week High Before Bond Auction

AIG Stands by Its Banker — Goldman Sachs

2010-05-13T05:55:00.000-07:00

Goldman Sachs still has a friend in AIG.

Despite its widely publicized legal troubles, Goldman’s status as one of AIG’s favorite bankers is safe, for now.

Just listen to AIG chairman Harvey Golub at the insurer’s annual shareholder meeting...

WSJ: AIG Stands by Its Banker — Goldman Sachs

Allianz Life annuities add to strong quarter

2010-05-13T04:50:00.001-07:00

The Twin Cities insurer expects to expand.

Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America reported Wednesday that it earned a first-quarter operating profit of $110 million, which it attributed to strong operations, a growing asset base and stable capital markets...

Star-Tribune: Allianz Life annuities add to strong quarter

Thomson Reuters Unveils Advisor Tool for Proposals

2010-05-12T04:53:00.000-07:00

‘PropGen’ software is meant to create quick, multi-layered proposals

Thomson Reuters has released a new proposal generator for financial advisors called PropGen. The software is meant to help advisors create business pitches for prospective and existing clients in a few minutes.

One of the advantages of PropGen, Thomson Reuters said at a roundtable discussion on Thursday, April 29, is its ability to link up with the company’s wealth of financial data and weave it quickly into a proposal, while integrating with the Thomson ONE Wealth Management system...

Investment Advisor: Thomson Reuters Unveils Advisor Tool for Proposals

Sales decline, but year's start pleases Aviva

2010-05-12T04:50:00.001-07:00

Aviva PLC said Tuesday that new sales dropped in the first three months of 2010, dragged down by a pullback in North American annuity sales.

The London insurance and financial services company showed sales growth in Europe and the United Kingdom over the previous year, but sales in the United States were down 44 percent in the quarter compared with last year. This is "because of the specific actions we took last year to moderate the pace of our annuity sales and focus on capital efficiency," the company said...

Des Moines Register: Sales decline, but year's start pleases Aviva

Conseco Changes Name to CNO Financial

2010-05-12T04:49:00.000-07:00

Carmel-based Conseco Inc. announced Tuesday that its name has changed to CNO Financial Group Inc.

The company, which offers life insurance, annuity and health insurance products through subsidiaries, said the name change reflects its varying businesses...

IndyChannel:

Your retirement savings may be next

2010-05-12T04:48:00.000-07:00

Could the Democrats in Congress actually be considering confiscating all 401(k), SEP and IRA accounts in exchange for offering Americans a "guaranteed annuity"?

The subject almost seems too far out there to even write about. While it is something that I had heard rumors of, I just couldn't believe this type of proposal would ever be considered in America. Let alone become part of an active public policy debate.

But when the Wall Street Journal writes on the subject, and the House Republicans on the committee that oversees our nation's pension system send a letter expressing concern to both Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Labor Secretary Hilda Solis expressing concern, and then issue a press release on it, it is time to get concerned...

Review-Messenger: Your retirement savings may be next

House Republicans to Obama Administration: Keep Bureaucrats’ Hands off Americans’ 401(k)s

2010-05-12T04:44:00.000-07:00

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and members of the House GOP Savings Solutions Group sent a letter to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner warning the Obama Administration that the government should keep its hands off of the retirement savings of Americans, and should reject proposals that would dismantle or nationalize the private 401(k) system in favor of a government-run retirement security regime. Several Administration officials, including the Vice President, have voiced support for efforts to create so-called “Guaranteed Retirement Accounts” or impose new government mandates which would undermine 401(k) retirement savings plans and jeopardize employers’ willingness to continue offering them to their workers...

RepublicanLeader: House Republicans to Obama Administration: Keep Bureaucrats’ Hands off Americans’ 401(k)s

Life insurers facing annuity squeeze

2010-05-12T04:43:00.000-07:00

Premiums on the decline; days of double-digit growth long gone

A period of fierce competition to build annuity premiums awaits life insurers as they contend with industry consolidation and the difficulties of standing out from rivals.

Premium growth for individual annuities has been on the decline for years. That's not likely to change anytime soon. The popularity of 1035 exchanges — tax-free transfers of one annuity into another — has been decreasing dramatically. In fact, Conning Research and Consulting estimates that the average annual annuity premium growth rate between 2007 to 2011 will come in at 2.3%. That's a considerable drop from the double-digit growth rates insurers saw during the late '90s...

Investment News: Life insurers facing annuity squeeze

Are Immediate Fixed Annuities A Good Idea? Sure, If You Have $100,000 To Spare

2010-05-12T04:38:00.000-07:00

More women are buying immediate fixed annuities. Should I follow their lead?

The impetus for this column, which I began last January when I was making my New Year's resolutions, was to clean up my finances and start saving more for retirement.

Since then, I have tripled the amount of money in my savings account, quit lending money to my siblings, and upped my contributions to my 401(k)...

Forbes: Are Immediate Fixed Annuities A Good Idea? Sure, If You Have $100,000 To Spare

When an Accountant Needs Financial Planning

2010-05-11T06:25:00.000-07:00

What happens when you’re a 65-year-old accountant and you’ve just been laid off by your employer of 20 years?

That’s what happened to a Seattle-area accountant recently, according to a moving story published over the weekend by the Seattle Times.

The accountant, identified as M. Sloan, has been searching fruitlessly for a new job since she was laid off last September by the manufacturing company where she worked. “There is nothing out there right now for a 65-year-old accountant,” she told the writer, Michelle Archer...

WebCPA: When an Accountant Needs Financial Planning

Harkin, Other Dems Back Indexed Annuity Amendment, And Other S. 3217 News

2010-05-11T04:47:00.000-07:00

Sen. Thomas Harkin has offered an amendment to S. 3217, the Restoring Financial Stability Act bill, that would give states and territories explicit authority to regulate indexed annuities.

The amendment, S.A. 3920, would define indexed annuities as insurance products and nullify Rule 151A, an effort by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to classify indexed annuities as securities and put regulation of the products in the hands of securities regulators...

NU: Harkin, Other Dems Back Indexed Annuity Amendment, And Other S. 3217 News

Insurance firm booted from Ga.

2010-05-10T05:43:00.000-07:00

California-based insurer, Trans World Assurance, agreed Wednesday to surrender its certificate of authority in Georgia in a consent order signed by Insurance Commissioner John W. Oxendine.

The order brings to an end the company's battle against a 2008 order fining the company $214,000 and requiring it to cease its operations in Georgia. At the time, the company was also ordered to refund monies collected from active duty members of the United States Armed Forces related to products it sold in Georgia, beginning in September 2007...

INN: Insurance firm booted from Ga.

The Hartford Marks Its 200th Anniversary

2010-05-10T05:38:00.001-07:00

The year 1860 marked an end to a recession caused by a credit collapse after banks loaned too much for the westward expansion of railroads during the nation's gold rush.

It was also the 50th anniversary year of the Hartford Fire Insurance Company, which had just finished a wildly successful decade. Income from premiums more than doubled in the 1850s compared with the previous 10 years. The company was stronger than its competitors and well-positioned for growth...

Courant: The Hartford Marks Its 200th Anniversary

Does a single-premium life insurance policy make sense as an investment?

2010-05-10T05:34:00.000-07:00

Question: I am a 74-year-old married woman, thinking about taking out a single-premium $100,000 universal life insurance policy. My husband and I do not need this money to supplement our income, but CDs are paying such low interest rates. Do you have any advice about this idea?

BND: Does a single-premium life insurance policy make sense as an investment?

Bull Market Signaled by Oil Producers Valued at 19 Times Income

2010-05-10T04:53:00.000-07:00

Investors in oil shares are more bullish on the U.S. economy than any time in the last eight years, convinced the biggest decline in equities since the bull market began will prove a buying opportunity.

The 39 energy producers and equipment makers in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index have traded at an average 19.1 times earnings in 2010, compared with 17.8 for the index. The last times they had higher valuations in 1994, 1999 and 2002, the benchmark gauge for U.S. stocks surged an average of 22 percent in the next year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg...

SFgate: Bull Market Signaled by Oil Producers Valued at 19 Times Income

Are the Feds trying to nationalize your retirement savings?

2010-05-10T04:47:00.005-07:00

For some time, there have been rumblings that the federal government might try to solve its budgetary problems by nationalizing (i.e., stealing) the money that millions of Americans have set aside for retirement in 401(k) plans and the like. One way they might do this is to confiscate the cash on hand in exchange for a promise to make future payments in the form of an "annuity." An involuntary annuity, in that scenario.

I haven't taken this speculation too seriously, mostly because the core of the Democratic Party consists of lawyers, and a lawyer's most precious possession is his 401(k) account. One of those who have taken the threat more seriously is Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who co-authored a letter warning the Obama administration against any attempt to confiscate Americans' retirement savings...

Power Line Blog: Are the Feds trying to nationalize your retirement savings?

Big insurers launching fee-based annuities

2010-05-10T04:47:00.003-07:00

Sensing demand, they ready products that are lower-cost, simpler

In an attempt to appeal to dually registered advisers, major life insurers are launching fee-based annuities.

Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America said May 1 that it had filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a fee-based variable annuity. Allianz also is considering the introduction of a similar product next year for registered investment advisers. The product would involve having a custodian hold the annuity...

Investment News: Big insurers launching fee-based annuities

Social networking brings risk management concerns

2010-05-06T05:50:00.000-07:00

The rapid growth of social media sites will bring new risks and challenges for risk managers, according to a recent survey by the Chubb Group of Insurance Cos.

The survey found that only 51 percent of respondents always use their real name on social networking sites.

According to Kenneth Goldstein, worldwide media liability manager at Chubb, "Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare have created new social media risks and an environment where many people don't know who they are talking to online..."

Producer's Web: Social networking brings risk management concerns

Zurich Profit Climbs 76% on Life-Insurance Sales

2010-05-06T05:49:00.000-07:00

Zurich Financial Services AG, Switzerland’s largest insurer, said first-quarter profit increased 76 percent after it sold more life products.

Net income rose to $935 million from a restated $532 million a year earlier, the Zurich-based insurer said today in an e-mailed statement. That beat the $887 million average estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Bloomberg...

BusinessWeek: Zurich Profit Climbs 76% on Life-Insurance Sales

Texas regulators close life-settlement company

2010-05-06T04:50:00.001-07:00

State regulators on Wednesday shut down Retirement Value, a New Braunfels life-settlement company accused of engaging in fraud in the resale of life insurance policies.

The Texas State Securities Board's enforcement division obtained a court order freezing Retirement Value's bank accounts and appointing a receiver to oversee the company...

Chron: Texas regulators close life-settlement company

Insurance: Safe Bets, Better Bets

2010-05-05T05:04:00.000-07:00

If you’re looking to tighten your belt, you may be eying your various insurance policies and wondering if you’re just throwing money down the drain. The answer is: You might be! There’s insurance you may have too much of, and insurance you don’t have enough of. Here’s how to sort it out...

The Takeaway: Insurance: Safe Bets, Better Bets

Bad Annuity Sales Still An Issue for SEC

2010-05-05T04:45:00.000-07:00

The Securities and Exchange Commision says it’s still running into unsuitable sales of retirement products and variable annuities to senior citizens.

Carlo di Florio, director of the commission’s Office of Compliance, Inspections and Examinations, blames the problem in part on companies that sell annuities but lack proper tools to determine whether a certain product is appropriate for a specific customer...

WSJ: Bad Annuity Sales Still An Issue for SEC

Alternatives to annuities? Plenty, say advisers

2010-05-05T04:44:00.000-07:00

Laddered bonds, dividend-paying stocks and others can provide cash to retirees

Erin Botsford has not always been a fan of annuities.

In fact, the president of The Botsford Group — and self-professed “former anti-annuity girl” — had little interest in the insurance products until she encountered a wholesaler selling the first variable annuity with a living benefit. That was in 1999 — at the height of dot-com frenzy. “It felt like the markets were getting heated up and frothy, so I proposed the annuity to clients,” she recalled...

Investment News:

Bank Annuity Sales Edge Higher

2010-05-04T04:46:00.000-07:00

Expert doubts annuity sales to be stellar in 2010 with unemployment to remain high.

Overall sales of annuities though bank holding companies were up slightly at $2.62 billion in 2009, according to the latest Michael White-American Bankers Insurance Association Bank Annuity Fee Income Report. The results, however, were skewed somewhat by BHC-in-name-only Morgan Stanley.

Thanks to its acquisition of Smith Barney from Citigroup in 2008, the former investment bank inherited a sizable annuity business and ranked third in terms of sales, at $253 million. Without Morgan Stanley's contribution, BHCs would have sold $2.37 billion, a 9.2% drop on 2008's sales. The results were released late last month...

INN: Bank Annuity Sales Edge Higher

Insurers cuffed by new annuity suitability rules

2010-05-04T04:37:00.000-07:00

A welter of new annuity requirements are roiling insurers, who must now deal with the added burden of making sure annuities are suitable for customers.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners in March adopted amendments to the annuity suitability model making carriers responsible for ensuring that all annuity transactions are appropriate for customers. The new rules also require insurers to establish a system to supervise recommendations made by sellers of annuities, and to make sure suitability standards are consistent with those of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc., when feasible.

Many representatives and agents say the new rules add to the already complex layers of review required by Finra...

Investment News: Insurers cuffed by new annuity suitability rules

New crop of VAs add tax, commodity, LTC features

2010-05-03T04:57:00.001-07:00

Insurer prospectuses for this year cover 140 product changes

Like September for Detroit, May is the month when variable annuity insurers reveal their new offerings. And this year, as updated prospectuses filed with the SEC reveal, the new features designed to lure investors to the products involve tax savings, commodities and long-term care...

Investment News: New crop of VAs add tax, commodity, LTC features

Beware: Ohio bars this life insurance

2010-05-03T04:56:00.001-07:00

People generally buy life insurance so their spouses or children can be taken care of when they die.

But unscrupulous insurance agents are trying to persuade consumers to buy policies that will put money in their pockets now and benefit investors they don't know when they die.

It's a scam, says the Ohio Department of Insurance, which is warning people against Stranger Originated Life Insurance. Agents target older consumers, many of whom have no idea the practice is illegal in Ohio...

Dispatch: Beware: Ohio bars this life insurance

For trade groups, lobbying pays

2010-05-03T04:54:00.000-07:00

SIFMA's chief made $2M in 2008; adviser groups paid their CEOs far less

For careerists in financial-trade-group management, heading a lobbying organization backed by huge corporate interests appears to be a more lucrative route to success than serving and educating financial advisers.

According to a review of tax filings for 2008, leaders of groups with major lobbying efforts — the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, the American Bankers Association and the Financial Services Roundtable, for example — earned more money than those whose groups whose mission was to promote the interests of working professionals...

Investment News: For trade groups, lobbying pays

Financial planning critical for special-needs children

2010-05-03T04:53:00.000-07:00

As you drive around Charlotte, you may see the billboards that tell us "Every 20 minutes a child is diagnosed with Autism." Most of us have heard more and more about autism over the years. The reason for that is that in the 1970s only 1 in 2,000 people were diagnosed with autism, and now, according to the Center for Disease Control, it is 1 in 110 - a twentyfold increase.

What you may not know is the impact autism, and other special needs, have on the family, especially their financial outlook...

Charlotte Observer: Financial planning critical for special-needs children

Lawsuit settled in case of $5.5B Deutsche team's exit

2010-05-03T04:48:00.000-07:00

A lawsuit filed by Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown against a team of top-producing brokers who left the firm for Barclays Wealth Management has been settled.

Deutsche sued the brokers — Scott Zelnick, Padraig McBrien and Heidi Guldbrandsen — after they left the firm last month to join Barclays. The team reportedly produced revenue of $15 million on a $5.5 billion asset base...

Investment News: Lawsuit settled in case of $5.5B Deutsche team's exit

Getting Insurance Sales Right

2010-04-30T05:07:00.000-07:00

Life insurance is starting to see some success in banks, but it remains a difficult sale compared with conventional investment products for bank reps, primarily because it takes longer to wrap up and involves probing into people's health issues. But the effort may be worthwhile for programs that want to expand their product mix and increase revenue. "Life insurance is the final frontier for bank investment programs," says Bruce Stava, who runs a successful life insurance sales program at First Bank, based in Creve Coeur, Mo. "It's an untapped opportunity, but most bank programs haven't figured out how to get enough out of it."

Some banks have cracked the code, though. Here are six bank-based life insurance programs ranked highest by Kehrer-LIMRA, based on the amount of insurance revenue generated per bank customer household...

BIC: Getting Insurance Sales Right

Wash. man found guilty of child’s murder for life insurance claim

2010-04-30T05:06:00.000-07:00

A Washington state jury found a 40-year old man guilty of second-degree murder in the drowning death of his step-daughter in what prosecutors said was an effort to collect a $200,00 life policy taken out three months earlier...

IFA Web News: Wash. man found guilty of child’s murder for life insurance claim

MetLife Swings to $835 Million Profit on Investments

2010-04-30T05:05:00.000-07:00

MetLife Inc., the biggest U.S. life insurer, swung to a profit in the first quarter as investments improved. The company gained in extended trading in New York.

Net income was $835 million, or 97 cents a share, compared with a loss of $544 million, or 71 cents, in the year-earlier period, New York-based MetLife said in a statement. Excluding some investment results, profit was $1.01 a share, beating the 98-cent average estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg...

BizWeek: MetLife Swings to $835 Million Profit on Investments

Platform Payoff

2010-04-30T05:04:00.000-07:00

Licensed retail bankers can boost your brokerage programs' profitability.

Sun National Bank's first effort to sell insurance and investments through its platform banker staff was a humbling experience. Four years ago, the Vineland, N.J., bank decided to put a licensed banker in each of its 62 branches. In hindsight, managers should have considered whether it had 62 bankers who actually fit the mold, says Edward Malandro, Sun National's executive vice president of consumer banking.

Bankers traditionally have a customer service rather than a sales mind-set, and that was the case with many of those Sun National trained and licensed. "We forced people into this role," says Malandro. "We paid all the expenses, but we weren't seeing any sales..."

BIC: Platform Payoff

Inappropriate Annuity Sales Still An Issue-Finra CEO

2010-04-30T05:03:00.000-07:00

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or Finra, remains concerned about the inappropriate sale of annuities to seniors, and its examinations of firms continue to raise red flags on the issue, Richard Ketchum, chairman and chief executive of the securities industry's voluntary regulatory organization, said Thursday.

In addition, Ketchum said that while it's not completely clear yet how the debate on financial reform will shake out, it does seem clear that there will be a focus on a common standard for broker-dealers and investment advisers. He also said more change is on the way for Finra's examination/enforcement program...

NASDAQ: Inappropriate Annuity Sales Still An Issue-Finra CEO

NAIFA Opposes Stranger-Originated Annuities

2010-04-30T05:02:00.001-07:00

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors adopted a policy opposing stranger-originated annuity transactions.

This relatively new type of annuity transaction involves guaranteed death benefit riders. These sales are demonstrating some of the same characteristics as stranger-originated life insurance, said NAIFA President Thomas D. Curry in a statement yesterday...

LifeSettlementsReport: NAIFA Opposes Stranger-Originated Annuities

At what point can a 401(k) painlessly go Roth?

2010-04-29T04:38:00.000-07:00

Q Would it be wise to convert a 401(k) plan from a former employer to a Roth IRA? I'm 66, working and have an old 401(k) plan worth $214,000...

Chicago Tribune: At what point can a 401(k) painlessly go Roth?

Protect assets from the next Bernie Madoff

2010-04-28T04:37:00.000-07:00

Determining whom to trust with your money isn't as easy as it once was. As Bernie Madoff proved, some of the most successful crooks have the right diplomas on the wall, the right credentials and plenty of references. If heeded, these tips can help you protect yourself and your assets from fraudulent financial advisers...

Bankrate: Protect assets from the next Bernie Madoff

Neb. investment advisor admits role in $8 million Ponzi scheme

2010-04-28T04:36:00.000-07:00

An Omaha, Neb., investment advisor could spend up to 20 years in federal prison and face a $1 million fine after pleading guilty to securities fraud.

Bryan S. Behrens, 47, who is scheduled to be sentenced July 16, was accused of bilking nearly 25 investors out of more than $8 million in Ponzi-like scheme, according to the Omaha World-Herald...

IFA Web News: Neb. investment advisor admits role in $8 million Ponzi scheme

Capital Analysts Hires Former FPA President

2010-04-27T11:51:00.000-07:00

Jim Barnash to develop branches, advisors; firm recruits large wealth manager, too

A past president of the Financial Planning Association (FPA), is joining Cincinnati-based Capital Analysts. Jim Barnash, president of the FPA from 2001 to 2006, will be Capital Analyst’s assistant vice president for branch office development, responsible for adding wealth management affiliates to the independent broker/dealer-registered investment advisor (B/D-RIA), as well as supporting the firm’s affiliated advisors in growing their practices.

Matt Lynch, President and CEO of Capital Analysts, said in the firm’s April 26 announcement, that: “We are pleased to have an individual of Jim’s prominence join us,” adding, "He recognizes the changes going on in the independent broker-dealer/RIA space..."

Investment Advisor: Capital Analysts Hires Former FPA President

Financial Planning Coalition Reports Success and a Champion in the Senate

2010-04-27T07:59:00.000-07:00

Despite lack of fiduciary standard in Dodd bill, group will continue to battle

“People on the Hill know what financial planning is now,” says Tom Potts, president of the Financial Planning Association (FPA), and while it may “take a while” to get everything that financial planners want in Washington, “we’re laying the foundation for the future.” Potts was speaking in San Antonio on April 23, during the annual FPA retreat, where he and the leaders of the other organizations in the Coalition for Financial Planning presented a status report to attendees on the Coalition’s efforts in Washington.

One of those groups is the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, whose board's immediate past director, Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, said during the session that “all of our organizations are so committed to establishing financial planning as a profession” to the point that “we’ve drafted a Financial Planners Act of 2010.” While admitting that “our chances are slim” of getting the Coalition’s needs met this time, referring specifically to the current text of Senator Chris Dodd’s financial services reform bill, she stressed that “Herb Kohl is our champion,” referring to the Democratic senator from Wisconsin...

Investment Advisor:

Retirement: Hedging your bets with a deferred variable annuity

2010-04-27T04:54:00.001-07:00

Deferred variable annuities are a cross between mutual funds and insurance. They let you invest in mutual fund-like accounts that can grow over time, and they offer a guaranteed minimum, in case the investments lose money.

James Rogers, a financial planner in Exton, Pa., long avoided recommending deferred annuities, mainly because distributions are taxed at ordinary income-tax rates rather than lower capital-gains rates reserved for most other investments. But Rogers took a second look when insurers started offering generous guarantees. "I found they really had some appeal to clients who have lived through two serious bear markets in the past 10 years and have seen significant volatility in their portfolios," Rogers says...

Examiner: Retirement: Hedging your bets with a deferred variable annuity

Schwab Reopens Door To Alternatives

2010-04-27T04:37:00.000-07:00

Schwab Advisor Services is once again accepting custody of new alternative investments such as shares in hedge funds and private equity.

The company had stopped accepting custody of such investments last year amid liability and regulatory concerns raised by the Madoff scandal and other events. It told advisors of the decision to change course this week...

FA Mag: Schwab Reopens Door To Alternatives

Affluent Buying More LTC Insurance

2010-04-26T05:19:00.001-07:00

The affluent are buying more long-term care insurance, but it's not for themselves. It's for their parents... These clients see the costs of their parents' care as a risk to either the estate they want to inherit or to their own assets.

"In many situations, they know they'll be stuck with this as their problem," says Norm Mindel, a Chicago-based financial advisor. "If the kids are well off, they know they're on the hook for taking care of Mom and Dad."

The issue isn't a new one, but Mindel says attitudes have shifted since the recent financial crisis, with people more receptive to long-term policies as opposed to simply putting money aside or other options. Before the recession, some advisers recommended skipping the coverage if someone had at least $2 million in assets. Now, many recommend the insurance because of shrinking assets and soaring health care costs...

FA Mag: Affluent Buying More LTC Insurance

Affluent Buying More LTC Insurance

2010-04-26T05:19:00.000-07:00

Life insurance sales boom in first quarter

2010-04-26T04:55:00.001-07:00

Risk-averse clients are flocking to products' returns, tax advantages, say broker-dealer execs

Shaken by the recession and concerned about risk, brokerage firm clients are buying life insurance... First-quarter sales of life insurance policies at major independent broker-dealers were up by at least a third, compared with a year earlier, executives say.

“Clients are more in a risk-management mode, so advisers who may have not been using life insurance as part of their practice, except in a reactionary way, are now more proactive because of the guarantees in the contract,” said James Swink, a vice president at Raymond James Financial Inc., who manages the firm's life insurance marketing and sales...

Investment News:

What Not to Say to a Big Insurance Company During a Policy Dispute

2010-04-26T04:51:00.000-07:00

Disgruntled Client in Hot Water for website Dedicated to Insurance Company's Products

Anthony Digati wasn't just another disgruntled client of the New York Life Insurance Company. He was a former agent and manager at the firm who had become ensnared in a $49,500 policy dispute.
What will become of the industry when Americans are trading in their policies?

Like many customers of large insurance companies, Mr. Digati, 52, of Chino, Calif., felt he was being cheated and treated unfairly.

The company disagreed.

Rather than walk away, Digati decided to take the dispute to another level. He created a website dedicated to New York Life's products and hired an email spam service...

ABC: What Not to Say to a Big Insurance Company During a Policy Dispute

Change Can Be Costly

2010-04-26T04:50:00.001-07:00

Dean Soto of Buena Park, Calif., was working in the aerospace field as an IT security specialist when his wife became pregnant with their second child and decided to stop working. The family experienced a significant loss of income. Mr. Soto, 29, decided to look for a better-paying job.

"At first I thought I could get another job in my field," he says. "But after interviewing, it was clear that there wasn't enough market demand, and my skill set was too specialized to justify the salary that I was seeking."...

WSJ: Change Can Be Costly

Retirement Risk for Women: Oversold Immediate Annuities

2010-04-26T04:44:00.002-07:00

Selling immediate fixed annuities to women retirees these days is about as hard as leading bears to honey. The combined impact of the market crash of ‘08 and the growing drumbeat of longevity risk warnings has given women a heightened awareness (if not low-grade fear) of outliving their money in retirement. That’s a golden opportunity for insurers who are quick to point out they have the perfect product to allay those concerns: a fixed immediate annuity that will make lifetime payouts. The concept is indeed sound, but the timing presents a retirement risk for women. Buying an immediate annuity right now and locking in a payout tied to today’s record-low interest rates isn’t exactly smart. But that hasn’t slowed down the insurers...

BNet: Retirement Risk for Women: Oversold Immediate Annuities