Agree that annuity is somewhat guaranteed lifetime stream of income akin to pension, which few of us have these days. That guarantee rests on the fate of the payer, and I have no control over their solvency. Money in my hands today is more valuable to me than a promise to give me money in the future.
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I could potentially use my div-paying stocks as a stream of income in my old age, which is why I have them. No, not guaranteed, but since I'm mostly holding blue chips, I like my odds. The best part is that it's up to me. This is why I've done what I've done, to have FLEXIBILITY. Don't need the cash? Reinvest the dividends. Run into a cash crunch? Receive divs in cash. No reason to sell the stock unless I want to, it's like just a hunk of principle throwing off interest. bad analogy, hopefully close enough for most...
I don't agree that Von would have sold at the bottom. we don't know. She bought on bad advice, but I have no way of knowing when/why she would sell.
Any investment can be lost. Just because someone invests aggressively does not mean bigger risk of loss, could simply mean a more volatile ride. I invest mostly in stocks, which makes me aggressive, but I don't dabble in Flavor of the Day, as that is far more risky than what I'm doing.
Sure, maybe IBM, ATT, Merck, Caterpillar, etc., will all go out of business before I retire, but I feel reasonably safe in having plenty of my retirement dollars in them vs doing the Facebook, Google, Apple, etc play for a quick buck. I'm also saving boodles in trade fees by, well, not trading much. These positions keep adding to themselves. when the price is high, when the price is low. what's not to love? oh yes, the lack of guarantee, the sheer aggressiveness.
ymmv
at the end of my days, someone will receive a huge pile of stocks and can continue playing the game I set out at exactly the point I stopped playing. The endpoint is when/if a company I own goes bust. If one tanks, it doesn't take the others down.
at the end of a annuitants days, that is usually the end of the money (tho I know some have provisions to pay spouse, etc., but generally there is An End of payments that is defined). If the payer goes insolvent, that's the end.
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not bothering me that the thread is old, it's good discussion.
The single advantage of an Annuity is that is is like a Pension for people that don't have pensions. they provide a lifetime stream of money.
Can you do the same or better with stocks, bonds, CDs....I doubt it.
I disagree....if you were in the stock market, you would probably have panicked and sold at the bottom.
At least an annuity will provide you with a LIFETIME income stream that you can't outlive.
Anything that is aggressive can be LOST.....be careful as what you are saying and what you want are two different things.
