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Annuities

Nearing or entering retirement? Annuities may be a tool to help you save and provide predictable income in retirement.
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Develop predictable income throughout retirement

At Thrivent, we take a three-pronged approach to retirement planning that helps you confidently transition from saving to spending.  A Thrivent financial advisor can help you diversify your assets to create lasting income, navigate common derailers like market fluctuations and incorporate tax efficiency throughout your financial plan.* Setting up the right strategies means you get to focus less on finances and more on doing what you love in retirement.

Diversify your assets

The strategy for handling your assets shifts as you move from saving to spending for retirement. Spread assets between guaranteed income sources to cover essential expenses, non-guaranteed income sources for aspirational expenses and growth assets like investments accounts.

Consider your goals and common “derailers”

Your financial advisor helps you align your retirement strategy with your goals and values. They can also help with strategies to help protect against common problems like inflation, health costs and other unexpected risks.

Prepare for taxes*

During retirement, your distributions fall into three different tax buckets: taxed now, later and never. Balancing your money across these three buckets provides greater tax efficiency when you withdraw your money.

Annuities in your retirement strategy

Face the unique challenges of transitioning to retirement with confidence. See how annuities can support your strategy.

Stable retirement income

Annuities provide predictable income. Whether you’re looking to retire now and opt for immediate annuity or planning for the future with a deferred annuity, an annuity can help you pay for essential expenses, like housing, utilities, groceries and health care.

Growing assets before retirement

When you have time before you’ll be retiring, deferred annuities can help you save money for a later date. You can even invest the money in a deferred annuity so that it may grow with the market.

Tax efficiency*

Different types of investments are taxed at different times, depending on when you make contributions or receive payouts. Including annuities in your strategy may help smooth out your tax liability.

Longevity

With Americans living longer than ever, it’s important to have a strategy so your savings can provide for you throughout your entire retirement.

Types of annuities

Work with your financial advisor to choose the type of annuity that supports your retirement strategy and financial goals.

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Discuss retirement strategies with a financial advisor

Talking to a financial advisor can help you uncover concerns you may have about retirement, like not having a paycheck, spending too much or not having enough money to last. Your financial advisor looks at all of your concerns and goals to help you create a financial plan that’s right for you.
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See our process

Meeting with a financial advisor

Use these questions as you start the conversation about creating a retirement strategy that’s right for you.

Questions to ask yourself

  • What does your ideal life in retirement look like?
  • What concerns do you have for retirement?
  • Have you thought about your lifestyle in retirement and how much savings you’ll need to support it?
  • What do you expect to do with your money in retirement and how long should it last?

Questions to ask your financial advisor

  • How do I make sense of the money I’ve saved for retirement?
  • What do I need to work on to have a more successful retirement?
  • How could an annuity help me reach my goals?
  • How can I generate the guaranteed retirement income I need?

Find your retirement style

Build a confident retirement. The IncomeMatch® fact finder will help you identify a retirement income approach that’s right for your level of risk tolerance.

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Frequently asked questions

Still have questions? Give us a call 800-847-4836 or contact us.

An annuity:
  • Is a contract between you and an insurance company to cover specific goals, like helping you accumulate money for retirement through tax deferral, providing guaranteed income, or both.
  • Can contain features that can be added for a fee.  These features can help you grow your retirement savings and may provide some protections in down markets.
The benefits, features, fees and expenses are important considerations and can be discussed with your financial advisor.

It's a personal decision, and many factors should influence your decision on when to purchase one—including your age, financial situation, retirement goals, risk tolerance and health. Get in touch with a Thrivent financial advisor for personalized help in determining how annuities may fit your overall financial strategy.

You should consider buying an annuity if you’re building a retirement plan. Common times and life events that should trigger annuity consideration, including nearing retirement age, having limited funds in a pension account and worrying about outliving your retirement savings.

Annuities may provide a source of guaranteed lifetime income in retirement, helping minimize the risk of outliving your money. However if you are in poor health, that should be a consideration before you would elect a lifetime income. Annuities could also be the wrong choice if they don't align with your overall financial strategy or goals.

Annuities come in many shapes and sizes. Depending on if income is needed now or in the future and what level of risk you are comfortable with. Some annuities also offer optional riders for additional fees that could enhance a death benefit or help protect during times of market volatility.

With all the options and tax considerations its important to discuss with your financial advisor what type of annuity could work for you and your goals.

Fixed rate and fixed indexed annuities are both contracts that guarantee no loss of principal due to market performance. The main difference is how interest is calculated. With a fixed rate annuity, your contributions grow tax-deferred at a guaranteed minimum interest rate. But with a fixed indexed annuity, any interest is tied to the performance of a specific market index, such as the S&P 500. Returns are typically subject to a specified cap. However, if the index experiences a loss, the annuity’s value does not decrease. Also, if the market index suffers losses, no interest will be applied that contract year.

The key difference between fixed and variable annuities is that fixed annuities accumulate interest at a specified rate, while performance fluctuates due to the underlying investments of a variable annuity. With a fixed annuity, your premiums grow at a guaranteed rate of return. So your annuity’s value will be more predictable at the time you annuitize and begin receiving guaranteed payouts. This differs from a variable annuity, where your premiums are invested in subaccounts like stocks, bonds and money markets during the accumulation phase. Higher returns will make for higher payouts once you annuitize, while losses typically result in smaller payouts.

An immediate annuity is an insurance contract that can turn your retirement savings into a guaranteed income stream. You make a lump-sum contribution, and it converts it into a series of payments for a set period of time. Unlike other types of annuities that have longer waiting periods before you can begin a guaranteed income stream, with an immediate annuity, it’s probably no surprise that you may receive your guaranteed payment right away, or at least within the first year you buy it.

While an immediate annuity begins distributing your payouts almost right away, your payouts with a deferred annuity are just that: deferred. You may fund a deferred annuity, like an immediate annuity, with a lump sum, but you have the additional option to fund the annuity with contributions over time. You may begin withdrawing money out of a deferred annuity federal tax penalty-free once you reach age 59½.

A deferred annuity is contract between you and an insurance company that is designed to provide guaranteed income later in life, usually during retirement. These types of annuities are known as deferred annuities because you are allowing your money to be invested, growing tax-deferred before taking income (with a variable annuity, depending on your investment choices, the value of your annuity may go down). You may fund a deferred annuity with a lump-sum contribution or a series of contributions over time. During the accumulation phase, your principal has the potential to grow tax-deferred until you start taking withdrawals at a future date you specify (once you turn 59 ½, withdrawals are federal tax penalty-free).

Discover more about annuities

Create a retirement strategy to support your financial goals

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  • *Thrivent and its financial advisors and professionals do not provide legal, accounting or tax advice. Consult your attorney or tax professional.
  • Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. The prospectus and summary prospectuses of the variable annuity contract and underlying investment options contain information on investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses, which investors should read carefully and consider before investing. Available at thrivent.com.
  • Withdrawals and surrenders will decrease the value of your annuity and, subsequently, the income you receive. Any withdrawals in excess of 10% may be subject to a surrender charge. The taxable portion of each annuity distribution is subject to income taxation. If a taxpayer is younger than 59½ at the time of distribution, a 10% federal tax penalty will apply to the taxable portion of the distribution unless a penalty-tax exception applies.
  • Holding an annuity inside a tax-qualified plan does not provide any additional tax benefits.
  • Product availability and features may vary by state.
  • Annuities are intended to be long term, particularly for retirement.
  • Guarantees are based on the financial strength and claims-paying ability of Thrivent.
  • While diversification can help reduce market risk, it does not eliminate it. Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against loss in a declining market.
  • By selecting “Start a conversation today”, “Find a financial advisor” or "Get Started" you will have the opportunity to find and request contact with a Thrivent financial advisor near you. Financial Advisors are registered representatives of Thrivent Investment Management Inc.
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