What’s Covered in this Review?
In this review, we will be discussing the following details on the Delaware Life Target Income 10 fixed indexed annuity:
- Product type
- Fees
- Current rates
- Realistic long-term return expectations
- How it is used
- How it is most poorly used
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We make the complex, simple.
If you have been thinking about purchasing an annuity so that you can attain tax-deferred savings, as well as a guaranteed lifetime income in retirement, then the Delaware Life Insurance Company’s Target Income 10 fixed indexed annuity may be a good choice for you.
But, before you run out and commit to this annuity – or to any annuity – it is highly recommended that you first attain a good understanding of how the annuity works, and how it may (or may not) work for you.
Throughout the past several years, the fixed indexed annuity, in particular, has become extremely popular. This is because a fixed indexed annuity, or FIA for short, can essentially offer the best of both worlds…or at least it can appear that way.
That is because these annuities provide the opportunity to receive positive growth when an underlying market index is being tracked and performs well, while also protecting your principal if the underlying index performs poorly.
As an additional bonus, fixed indexed annuities can also provide you with the ability to receive a guaranteed income for the remainder of your lifetime – regardless of how many years that income may be needed. This, in turn, can alleviate the worry about not having any income left at a time when you may need it the most.
Due in large part to the increased number of new-fangled products that are being pushed out into the marketplace, though, by insurance companies – each trying to outdo the other – these fixed index annuities can also be extremely confusing. So it makes it even more essential that you read over all of the fine print before you commit what could be a large percentage of your savings to this annuity.
Annuity and Retirement Income Planning Information That Can Be Trusted
If this is your very first visit to our website, we would like to formally welcome you to Annuity Gator. We are a team of annuity professionals who have a key focus on offering comprehensive – yet non-biased – annuity reviews online.
We’ve been at this for quite a long time now, and far longer than our competitors have – although many of them would like to have you think otherwise. Due to our experience and longevity in this arena, we have become very good at what we do, and we’ve actually come to be known as a trusted source of annuity information.
If you’ve been reviewing annuities on the Internet, it is possible that you have come across some highly conflicting information about these products. This, however, isn’t really all that uncommon, as there are many different annuities, and there many different thoughts about them.
It is possible, too, that you may have attended an annuity seminar in the recent past, where in return for a free lunch or dinner, the presenter discussed the Delaware Life Insurance Company’s Target Income 10 annuity.
In order to learn more about this financial product, you may have run across some of the other websites out there that discuss annuities – but are more interested in simply obtaining your contact information. In order to do this, whey will oftentimes attempt to “lure” you in by making some outrageous claims about the annuities that they offer, such as:
- High Annuity Income Payouts
- Guaranteed Income for Life
- Top-Rated Annuity Carriers
- Low Fees
Does this sound familiar?
But, even as nice as these claims may be, it means that it is even more necessary for you to make sure that they are actually true before you move forward and commit a large chunk of your money to such products.
In any case, if you have been looking for more in-depth details about the Target Income 10 fixed index annuity from Delaware Life Insurance Company, you are definitely in the right place. In fact, we dare say that our site is the only place on the Internet where you’ll get all of the details that you need for making a well-informed annuity buying decision.
Before we get too far into this review, we do want to be perfectly clear in stating that we believe that annuities can be a very viable financial option for some people – provided that they fit in with your other short- and long-term financial goals.
So, if you’re ready to begin this review, let’s go ahead and dive in!
Delaware Life Target Income 10 Fixed Index Annuity at a Glance
Year | Premium Bonus Recapture % |
---|---|
1 | 100 |
2 | 90 |
3 | 80 |
4 | 70 |
5 | 60 |
6 | 50 |
7 | 40 |
8 | 30 |
9 | 20 |
10 | 10 |
Opening Thoughts on the Delaware Life Target Income 10 Fixed Index Annuity
Founded in 2013, Delaware Life is a member of Group One Thousand One – an ecosystem of businesses that make insurance more useful, intuitive, and accessible for everyone. (Although the company actually has in excess of 40 years of experience in the annuity market, being initially established with the purchase of Delaware Life Holdings, LLC).
As of December 31, 2017, the company managed approximately 320,000 in-force annuity and life insurance policies, which represent more than $36 billion in assets under management. The company also had more than $14 billion of invested assets at year-end 2017.
Due in part to the constant ups and downs of the stock market over the past decade or more, the demand for fixed annuities has substantially increased – and Delaware Life offers a variety of this type of annuity.
Lately, more and more people have been taking a closer look at fixed indexed annuities. This is because, in addition to keeping principal safe (in any market condition), these financial vehicles can also provide you with the opportunity for ample growth, as well as a set amount of income that could last you for the remainder of your lifetime.
Yet, even though this might sound like a win-win-win situation, the reality is that if something sounds like it may be too good to be true, then it typically is – so you should ideally get as much in-depth detail as possible if you are considering committing to it for the long term.
Before we get into the gritty details, here are some necessary legal disclosures…
This is an independent annuity product review. It is not a recommendation to purchase or to sell an annuity. Delaware Life has not endorsed this review in any way, nor do we receive any type of compensation for providing this review. This annuity review is meant solely to be an independent review at the request of our readers so that they may see out perspective when breaking down the positives and the negatives of this particular annuity. Before purchasing any type of insurance and/or investment product, it is important that you do your own due diligence, and that you consult a properly licensed professional if you should have any specific questions that relate to your individual situation. All of the names, marks, and materials that were used for this annuity review are the property of their respective owners.
For more information on how to compare annuities in order to determine which one may be the best for you and your financial circumstances, to obtain our free annuity report.
How Delaware Life Describes the Target Income 10 Fixed Index Annuity
The Target Income 10 fixed index annuity is a relatively new annuity introduced into the marketplace in early 2018. According to Delaware Life, this product offers an exceptionally competitive lifetime income.
As with other annuity products, the Target Income 10 offers the ability to accumulate funds tax-deferred. This means that you can earn interest on your deposited principal, as well as interest on the interest you earn, and interest on the money that would otherwise have been paid out in tax. With that in mind, the money you have in this annuity can basically grow and compound exponentially over time.
The Target Income 10 annuity from Delaware Life offers three different index crediting strategies for growing your account value. These include the S&P 500 Index, the Morgan Stanley Global Opportunities Index, and the CROCI Sectors III USD 5.5% Volatility Control Index. There is also a fixed account that may be chosen for some – or even all – of your money.
Because many people who are preparing for the future want to ensure that they have ample income, an annuity like the Target Income 10 can be a good choice. One reason for this is because this annuity offers an optional Guaranteed Lifetime Withdrawal Benefit (GLWB) rider that provides lifetime income – even if your account value should go to zero (provided that certain requirements are met).
The optional GLWB rider grows your benefit base by 8% each year for the first ten years that you own the annuity. (The benefit base is the amount on which your lifetime income will be calculated).
Also, if you choose to go with the GLWB rider at the time you purchase the Target Income 10 annuity, Delaware Life will also add a 10% bonus to your benefit base for all of the premiums you pay in during the first year.
There are some other “bells and whistles” that you’ll find on the Target Income 10 fixed annuity, too, such as a death benefit for your loved ones. Here, should you pass away before you begin to receive your annuity income payments, Delaware Life guarantees that your named beneficiary (or beneficiaries) will receive the full account value – including any of the interest that you have earned).
If you’d like to learn even more about the Delaware Life Target Income 10 fixed index annuity, you can check out all of the in-depth details in the consumer brochure HERE.
How a Financial or Insurance Advisor Might Pitch this Annuity
For a while, now, fixed indexed annuities have been touted by insurance and financial advisors as the solution to having an opportunity for growth, yet without having to worry about the loss of principal if the market should take a dive.
But it’s really important to be careful here, as a jack of all trades is oftentimes a master of none. With that being said, while you can definitely achieve a higher rate of growth than you could with a regular fixed annuity, the fixed indexed version will typically “cap” that growth. That means that, even if the underlying index being tracked has a stellar year, you will only be able to participate in a certain percentage of it.
As an example, if the stated cap is 5%, and the underlying index that your annuity is tracking returns 10% for a given year, your return would be capped at just 5%. Because of that, you could end up missing out on years where the index has a stellar performance.
With this particular annuity, you could be subject to caps, as well as participation rates, and/or spreads. A participation rate is the percentage of the gains that are achieved by the underlying index that will be credited to the annuity. So in this case, if the participation rate is 80%, and the underlying index returns 10% during a given time frame, then you would only get 80% of that gain, or 8%.
With a spread, a certain percentage will actually be subtracted from any gain that the underlying index achieves. With this in mind, it is absolutely essential that you know how the annuity is set up to credit returns, as well as any other factors that could have an impact on the amount of money you earn.
What About the Fees on the Delaware Life Target Income 10 Fixed Index Annuity
There are also some fees to be mindful of with this annuity. For instance, the optional rider that provides guaranteed lifetime income in the future comes at an added costs (which means that you must add more premium to your deposits). Plus, even though insurance companies will oftentimes exclaim that their annuities are “liquid,” this is not the case, at least not entirely.
For example, with the Target Income 10 annuity, if you withdraw more than 10% of your contract value within the first ten years, you will incur a surrender charge. (And, if you make withdrawals before you turn age 59 1/2, you could also incur an additional “early withdrawal” penalty from the IRS).
The Annuity Gator’s End Take on the Delaware Life Target Income 10 Fixed Index Annuity
Where it works best:
Although this annuity may not be ideal for everyone, it could be a nice option if you are seeking the following features:
- The option for market index-linked growth
- Protection of your principal – in any market conditions
- Guaranteed income in retirement
Where it works the worst:
The Target Income 10 annuity may not, however, work very well in all situations. This is especially the case if you:
- Are seeking the opportunity for an uncapped rate of return
- Want or need to access more than just 10% of your money within the first ten years of purchasing the annuity
- Do not plan to use the lifetime income feature on the annuity
In Summary
When thinking over the purchase of an annuity, it is critical that you consider a long list of criteria. These should ideally include the annuity’s options for growing your money, as well as the way that it keeps your principal safe. And, because many people purchase annuities for the purpose of receiving long-term income, this too is extremely important.
If you are still leaning towards the Delaware Life Insurance Company’s Target Income 10 annuity, you can count on the fact that your money will be safe – no matter what occurs in the market. Also, you can count on a stream of lifetime income in retirement.
But, even with all of the awesome benefits that this annuity can provide you with, there could still quite honestly be a better option out there for you. With that in mind, it can be extremely beneficial to have this annuity tested, based on your specific parameters.
We are happy to provide this testing for you at no charge or obligation. If this is something that you would be interested in, then please just let us know by completing our secure online form here.
Have Any Additional Questions? Notice Any Mistakes on This Review?
We know that this annuity review was a bit on the long side – and for that, we would sincerely like to thank you for sticking with us through to the end here. Our feeling is, though, that we would much rather provide you with a tad bit “too much” information about these products that not provide you with enough.
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Best,
The Annuity Gator
P.S. If you would like to read more of our Delaware annuity reviews here’s some links to check out: