PLANADVISER - Fall 2023 - 2

Publisher's Note //
publisher: Alison Cooke Mintzer
Alison.Mintzer@issmediasolutions.com
A Shift Toward Annuities
I
f you won the lottery, would you take the lump
sum, or the monthly payments? I've heard that
most people say they'd take the lump sum, so I
was surprised by a USAA survey earlier this year that
found, among younger adults (ages 18 through 34) who
were presented with that scenario, 65% said they'd opt
for the monthly payments.
Maybe there is, in fact, a shift in perception about
the need for steady income-if so, it provides a more
receptive audience for discussions of income in retirement and of lifetime
income products. I make that distinction to separate " income in retirement " -
whereby I mean draw-down systems or other nonguaranteed payments
coming from, say, a managed account or payout fund-from lifetime income,
referencing some sort of annuity, which provides a guaranteed income stream.
In that USAA survey, more than three-quarters (79%) of adult respondents
said it will be more important to have guaranteed monthly income in their
retirement than a particular dollar amount saved. And this is not the only
survey to show that interest in guaranteed lifetime income is growing.
Moreover,
there's been a great amount of discussion in the industry
about generating retirement income and lifetime income streams for participants-and
lots of hope that the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement
Enhancement Act and SECURE 2.0 will open the door to more usage of annuities
in plans and for distributions. It's not that these options haven't been
there before-some version of them has existed since the late 2000s-but I
don't think they've had the support of plan sponsors. Therefore, demand has
been inadequate to force accessibility and support for them on platforms. I
can compare them to automatic enrollment and target-date funds before the
Pension Protection Act-plans could utilize them, but many did not.
Is now the time to finally embrace products that intertwine guarantees with
traditional investment portfolios? I see insurance providers working to design
such products that overcome many of the traditional concerns about flexibility,
accessibility and the potential to be personalized to drive positive outcomes
for a diverse range of plan participants. There are also programs such as the
Hueler Income Solutions model-for which we gave founder Kelli Hueler a
PLANADVISER Vision Award earlier this year-that permit buying institutionally
priced annuities by individual participants.
An Allianz Life study found that, this year, nearly seven in 10 people
(68%) would like more information about annuities as part of their plan-an
increase from 62% in 2022 and 56% in 2021. At the same time, 67% said they
would consider adding an annuity to their plan investment holdings if one
was available, up from 60% in 2022 and 59% in 2021.
Advisers are going to play a key role in furthering discussions about these
options. When we surveyed you for our Retirement Plan Adviser Survey last
fall, we found that most said the average defined contribution plan participant
had minimal interest in investment options that guarantee lifetime
income starting at retirement. Based on some more recent surveys, it appears
that perception is wrong. We'll see if the feeling is the same this year, as our
survey is in the field now.
Advisers also thought, similarly, that plan sponsors had only a little
interest in such products, which may or may not be correct. I might suggest
that it's up to advisers to help plan sponsors know whether or not they have
an interest-to help them understand these products and what options might
be right for their plan participants, especially if the population of participants
wants more information. -Alison Cooke Mintzer, Publisher
creative director: SooJin Buzelli
SooJin.Buzelli@issmediasolutions.com
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PLANADVISER - Fall 2023

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