Why Americans Are Investing in Retirement Income Plans More than Ever Before

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7.7.23: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Producer:
Any examples used are for illustrative purposes only and do not take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs and may not be suitable for all investors. It is not intended to predict the performance of any specific investment and is not a solicitation or recommendation of any investment strategy.

Producer:
Welcome to Money Matters with Mike, with your host, Mike Zaino. Get set for a full hour of financial information and economic news affecting your bottom line. Mike works hard each day to educate Americans like you on how to reach the financial freedom they've worked so hard for. And he can help you, too. So now let's start the show. Here's Mike Zaino.

Mike Zaino:
What's up? What's up? What's up? It's Mike Zaino coming to you live from Fort Mill, South Carolina. Happy Saturday, people. What a great time to be alive in these United States of America. Money Matters with Mike is a show designed to arm you with information and give you plenty of meat on the bone to chew on each and every week. And today is no exception. We are absolutely bringing it again. On today's show, we're going to talk about why Americans are investing in annuities. You heard that right, Annuities at a record pace. And as always, I have the distinct honor and privilege of being joined by the one the only my co-host and producer extraordinaire, Mr. Matt McClure. Matt, how are you doing today, brother?

Producer:
I'm doing great, Mike. I hope you have had a fantastic week, sir.

Mike Zaino:
I have, man. People are lining up, beating me down as far as my phone lines and contact page. I mean, we're helping a lot of folks out there on the path for financial freedom and or at least financial success. Okay. If it's not freedom, we can improve your situation. And so I enjoy having all those conversations. I have been absolutely burning the candle at both ends, working from 8 a.m. till 10 p.m. because of the demand. And you know, I live for this stuff. This is this is a this is not work for me. I haven't worked a day in the last 12 years because helping people is what gets me up out of bed and gets what I sleep very well at night.

Producer:
That's right. Because you're that's you know, they say if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. And that is obviously very true. And you know, really sounds like a lot of what we're going to go into today is bearing out in real life. You know why Americans are investing in annuities at a record pace? I mean, you really do see that day in and day out.

Mike Zaino:
I do every single day. And it doesn't matter the situation that folks find themselves in. I see people that have, you know, maybe 100 grand. That's all they've been able to save over the course of their entire lives. And then I see people with multiple millions. And guess what? They're each buying annuities for several reasons, namely the protections and the income guaranteed lifetime income that they afford, that simply investing in the market just does not.

Producer:
Yeah. And you know what? We always kind of shudder at the the word guarantee in the, you know, financial sort of industry here. But this is a place where we can actually say it because according to these, you know, these contracts and according to, you know, subject to the claims paying ability of the insurer, of course there are guarantees here for that lifetime income for no loss of principle, no loss of the previous year's growth as well. So it's really, really something that people are very into these days. Obviously, with all of that instability that we've seen in the markets.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah, today's annuities are definitely not your grandfather's annuities and we'll go into that a lot more in detail here in the show.

Producer:
Absolutely, Will. And wanted to say, of course, a big, big welcome as Mike already has to all of our listeners today. Thank you so, so much for taking time out of your day to enjoy a little bit of financial education. That's really what it's all about and getting you on the path to some financial freedom, as Mike was saying earlier, or even just financial success, as it were. You can catch us as a podcast as well. You go to MoneyMattersWithMike.com, or you can go to any of the major podcast places where you get podcasts, Apple, Spotify, Pandora, the iHeart, all the big ones there and even some of the some of the ones you might not have heard of as well. We're on pretty much all of them. So if you can't find us there, you're not looking. And we're also on YouTube. Search for money matters with Mike on YouTube. You'll find some great videos there. And we love to see our view counts go up and up each and every week. And of course, the Facebook page very popular these days, Mike. And getting getting more so right?

Mike Zaino:
It is getting more so people are commenting on our posts more than ever, which is great because I'm the one that's able to interact with folks. On a more personal level. Folks are asking questions. They're direct messaging me for things that they'd like to learn about on future shows. And, you know, we're not the people that are just blowing up Facebook with 15 posts a day and trying to, you know, spam. Your inbox when you subscribe. That's not at all how we operate, but we're always going to put pertinent information. We'll put some funny stuff in there as well. But the biggest thing is, is that it allows another avenue for folks just to interact and to get answers to questions and to see what other people might be going through who are in similar situations and the way that they've responded and dealt with things through working with us and our team.

Producer:
Yeah, that's right. And that is, you know, some great interaction there. Also great interaction. When you call Mike Zaino on the phone, you know, he does answer his phone, unlike a lot of people these days. You know, when you call them, they just don't they just don't answer. They're like, if it's not a text or an instant message or a direct message on social media, they're not answering it. Well, Mike Zaino does answer his phone and you can call him at 70456015737045601573. And also, Mike, for our listeners, you know, we want to offer we actually have a handful of these free reports that we offer to our listeners. One, especially though that we wanted to highlight today, was a free report that we can send on the widow's tax, talk about the widow's tax and exactly what that is.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah. So I mean, a lot of folks are married and they have a spouse and eventually one of the spouses passes away. It's not something we look forward to. But that passing, okay comes with a whole realm of ramifications for the surviving spouse. And there is a reason that 85% of women, especially change their financial professionals after their spouse passes away. This is a free, you know, just piece of information, a little white paper, if you will, that that kind of outlines some of those things to help those widows who are going through a tough time grieving, just prepare a little bit better for everything that they have in store after their partner passes away.

Producer:
Yeah, and a lot of stuff you might not know, some things that you that will help you prepare going forward for this new phase of your life. And you've already been thrown a lot of curveballs in this particular situation. Losing a spouse, I'm sure not an easy thing. And you know, I know that from my life, just from my dad passing away and seeing what my mom has been going through these past this past like almost year and a half now. And so, yeah, it's not easy. So we are here to help. And and so we can give you that free report on the widow's tax to do just that. And you can get that free report by giving Mike Zaino a call. Once again, the number is 704 560 1573 You can also go to the website It's money matters with micom a lot to get to here on the show today Mike where we've got of course we mentioned teased it at the top annuities being bought at a record pace. We'll have some updates there on exactly why that is and you know some some real life examples from, you know, because that's something, as we said, that you see every day we'll have a problem solver as well. And you know, a lot of people might have an annuity that they don't necessarily understand. We'll talk about that as well and give some help here on on the air and on the podcast. Also, if you're changing jobs soon, what to do with your retirement savings that might be orphaned or left behind at that old job. And then some survey results about retirement, some big takeaways from an annual survey by one of the big providers nationwide as well. So we'll talk about all of that and much more, including this week in history. First, though, let's get to our Quote of the week.

Speaker4:
And now for some financial wisdom. It's time for the quote of the week.

Producer:
And those words of wisdom this week might come from not you know, we usually have a celebrity or someone who's a famous, you know, economist or motivational speaker or say, a Warren Buffett, who is just one of the richest guys in the world. Usually that's what we do. This is actually kind of some ancient wisdom that we're going to share here with you that's that's been around for centuries. From a Japanese proverb and the quote of the week this time around is money grows on the tree of persistence. That's a good.

Mike Zaino:
One. That that is a good one. It's it's more of a metaphorical expression that highlights the relationship between persistence and financial success. And it suggests that through consistent effort, determination and perseverance, one can achieve financial abundance or success, just like a tree that bears fruit when nurtured over time. But there are several factors that our listeners need to consider in that Money does not come easily or magically it requires. Sustained effort and hard work over an extended period.

Producer:
Hungry for something to chew on. Here's some meat on the bone.

Mike Zaino:
Similar to how a tree needs consistent care such as watering, pruning and nurturing. Financial success requires ongoing dedication, commitment and persistence in pursuing goals and opportunities like a tree. Facing various challenges such as harsh weather conditions or pests. Right? The Beatles or the grubs that are eating their roots. Individuals pursuing financial success often encounter obstacles and setbacks, and persistence implies the willingness to face and overcome those challenges by adapting to circumstances and continuing the pursuit of financial goals despite those difficulties. Trees take time to grow and bear fruit. Similarly, financial success often requires long term investment and patience. All right. That proverb suggests that persistence in saving, investing wisely and building sustainable income streams can eventually lead to the accumulation of wealth and financial abundance. And persistence can also be linked to the concept of compounding. When individuals consistently make efforts, learn from their experiences, and stay focused on their financial goals, those results tend to accumulate over time. And that proverb implies that small actions or investments made consistently can grow and multiply, leading to greater financial rewards in the future. Not only does it require all of those, but persistence requires resilience and perseverance as setbacks and failures are inevitable on the path to financial success. The ability to bounce back from those setbacks learn from mistakes and maintain the determination to keep going is crucial in achieving long term financial growth.

Producer:
You know, it's it's kind of like when we talk about it just reminded me just popped in my head. When we talk about Roth IRAs versus traditional IRAs, we often use that metaphor about paying the taxes on the the bag of seed or on the harvest. Well, it's this is talking about that persistence that's in between planting that seed. And when you're able to, you know, harvest all of that abundance that you have in the end. Right. It doesn't it's not just like you plant the seed and then it magically grows over time. No, you have to tend to it. You have to water it. You have to make sure that the soil is in good condition and remains that way. You've got to make sure that if any changes need to be made, for example, you got you got to prune this branch or that branch or whatever so that it can grow bigger and better. So it's all about the the work, the maintenance that goes along in that longest time period of your planning for retirement, which is really your working years.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah. And I think it also emphasizes, Matt, the importance of persistence alongside other factors such as financial literacy, strategic decision making and adaptability. Persistence alone is not a guarantee of financial success, but it is often considered a valuable attribute that contributes to achieving one's financial goals.

Producer:
Yeah, you kind of have to, you know, know what you're doing. In other words, don't just make changes for the sake of making changes. Don't just, you know, dig up this plant and plant that other one for the sake of it. You know, make sure that it's the right change to make or the right move to make the right plan to put in place. That's where somebody like a mike Zaino comes in handy because you're able to then, you know, take your knowledge and because you do this every day, help people along those lines and help them, you know, make a plan that's right for them.

Mike Zaino:
That's true. And a lot of folks out there when we're talking about gardening and digging up plants, you may say, well, heck, I have a green thumb. Awesome. I can make you a greener thumb. Or other people out there were like, I kill everything I plant. I may have a black thumb like my wife. She has a black thumb. I'm the I'm the green thumb in the family. But, you know, that's why the the one on one consultations are so important because we provide those consultations at no cost to our listeners. And guess what, folks? There is no obligation. You're only going to work with us if it's best for you. And so there's lots of things that we're going to discover inside of those one on ones. But again, they are free, no obligation. So reach out.

Producer:
Yeah, absolutely. Do that and you can reach out at Money Matters with Mic.com. Just go to the contact page. Their money matters with Mic.com. And you can you can request rather your free full financial consultation or you can call 704 5601573. And that's the thing Mike. It's it's the listeners it's their money. And so it's going to be important to them, obviously. So that is why it's important to you and you want to help them with it 100%.

Mike Zaino:
And so, you know, inside of the consultations, you know, it's not just a phone call. We're going to be like, hey, and we're going to meet and greet. You know, that's the first one, right? But, you know, in in our in-depth consultation, we're going to try to dive deeper into your financial situation. If you're paying unnecessary fees or you have unnecessary costs that can be eliminated, whether they're in your IRAs, whether they're in your 401. K's, if you have annuities already, some of them are not the right type. There are over 100 different types of annuities, for example. Some of them I wouldn't put my worst enemy in and others of them I actually have my family in. So not only do I talk the talk, but I walk the walk. If you're of Social Security age or you're closing in on Social Security, there's a lot of different strategies for when and how you should claim Social Security so we can help you with Social Security maximization planning. If you are of Medicare age, Medicare can be extremely confusing with four parts A, B, C, and D, along with Medicare supplement so we can help you with Medicare planning. The bottom line is, is that we're going to compare your situation to what's possible if you work with us and if we can do better for you, obviously, we'll move forward.

Producer:
That's right. And it's only if, you know, there is mutual agreement and understanding there and you want to move forward. It feels right. That's what it comes down to, is, you know, having that good feeling about the person that you're working with and making sure that it's a good fit because it might not be. And if it's not, that's fine. If it is great and you can have that retirement that you have always dreamed of and have always, you know, tried to plan for and hopefully Mike can help you along the way of making it even better. Well, Mike, you know, you mentioned just a second ago there annuities and I love you know, you said that there are so many different kinds and there are and some of them you wouldn't have your worst enemy in, but others are perfect for even you and your family. Talk about this. We've got you know, there's this article in CNBC here recently about how Americans are investing in annuities at a record breaking pace, biggest number of all time last year in annuity sales. Right?

Mike Zaino:
It was. And I guess what's shocking to me is, you know, a lot of those money management giants are actually starting to recognize what we've been saying now for a couple decades. And I guess they figure, hey, if you can't beat them, join them. Right. But, you know, you got giants like Fidelity. You've got BlackRock and State Street Global Advisors, which are some of the most the largest global money management companies now starting to recognize, you know, that Americans need a plan to have money so that they don't outlive those income streams in the later years. And last year, the demand hit an all time high among concerns about the United States economy and just the possibility of a recession. And so whenever the markets are in decline, if you have a shorter time horizon or if you are in that retirement red zone, you cannot afford to be losing money that you are going to need in retirement. And God forbid you are already in retirement and drawing down on your retirement money and your money is exposed to the negative possibility of market declines. Your money simply will not last you as long as you need it. And so, according to Limra, which is an insurance industry trade group, annuity sales hit an all time high last year and early forecasts for so far this year, even though we're halfway through it right show another record breaking year for 2023 is a possibility, especially after the first quarter sales have come in in 2023.

Producer:
Yeah. And and you know, another thing that we often will complain about, I know, especially anybody who has been in the market for a house or a car or anything like that, that you have to pay an interest rate on everybody who has a credit card and carries a balance from month to month. We've been complaining about it because we've been feeling it. You know, the rise in interest rates with the Fed trying to combat inflation while annuities have actually been benefiting from those interest rate hikes.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah, they have because, you know, that's the I guess the positive side is that when you go to put money into any type of safer investment, traditionally, with the exception of fixed indexed annuities, they are not paying higher interest rates and you're kind of held back. Safety is really, really easy to find, but the trade off is is the rate of return. But that's not the case anymore because now we're seeing even like multi year guaranteed annuities and those are called migas. That's the acronym for multi year guaranteed annuity. These are paying above 4% guaranteed each and every year for multiple years, depending on how long you can afford to allow that money to sit. And when you consider the fact that Americans are living longer and healthier lives, their risk of outliving their savings is accelerating at a record pace.

Producer:
Yeah. And you know, we talked about that for a good portion of another show here recently about that being the number one fear of retirees is running out of money, even more so than death itself. And that just speaks volumes to, you know, one of the reasons why annuities are selling at a record pace currently. And, you know, not only that, but the safe aspect of it on the on the investment side, you know, I know that I'm going to put my money in here and it's going to be, you know, a safe investment. But then also on the in that decumulation phase, when you're taking that lifetime income, you know that that income is going to be there. You don't have to worry about that.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah, it's much more of a security blanket, right? People who are fortunate enough to have worked for a company that actually offered them a pension plan, whether it was a private company or the United States government or the state government. Right. They offer pension plans. But outside of that, in today's day and age, those are pretty much extinct. Instead of a defined benefit plan like a pension, they give you some the opportunity to participate in a defined contribution plan where you're contributing your own dollars like a 401 K or a 403 B And so when you consider that, you know, the security blanket, you guys like getting pensions, those of you who do it, those of you who are on Social Security, you like getting Social Security every single month, like clockwork, you know, having it deposited into into your bank account. Well, the annuities are an option even for those who aren't feeling very confident about just depending on Social Security or just depending on Social Security and their 401. K, because it might not be enough to get them to the finish line on a guaranteed basis. And so, again, having that peace of mind when you lay your head down at night is just another check in the in the pro column for the possibility of adding an annuity to the portion of your portfolio where it makes the most sense.

Producer:
Yeah, absolutely. So and you can actually start on that journey finding out more about annuities if one might be right for you and for your retirement plan, just go to Money Matters with Mic.com or call Mike Zaino at (704) 560-1573.

Producer:
It's time for this week's Problem solver.

Producer:
All right, Mike, So we've been talking a lot today about annuities so far. And, you know, we alluded to this earlier that there are a lot of different types of annuities. So in our Problem Solver segment today, we're going to kind of solve the problem of breaking down exactly what different types of annuities are, because a lot of people have annuities they don't necessarily understand out there, especially if they've had them maybe for a while or if they've had them. And it might be a variable annuity, which are a little bit more difficult to understand. They might not necessarily know that their money is at risk in the market. They might not know that they're paying high fees. They might not know that they're paying things like income writer fees just to have their own money paid back to them. So it's like, you know, there are a lot of wrinkles in those types of of annuities. So talk about these different types, especially the variable annuities here and sort of break down which ones you tend to gravitate toward, Right?

Mike Zaino:
So so when we look at all of the annuities and that are available out there and I said there are over 100 different types and there are. Right. And they can be classified basically into a few categories. You have fixed annuities. Those are fixed at a certain interest rate for the life of the annuity. And the shorter term ones now are actually not that bad. You can find multiyear guaranteed annuities that are paying, like I said, above 4% guaranteed for the next several years, whether that's three years, five years, seven years. So that's great for intermediate money. Okay. Other than that, in a lower interest rate environment, I'm not a big fan of fixed annuities because you're locked in at a fixed low interest rate and then you have on the other side you have the variable annuities, right? And so those just the word variable itself means change. And so I don't want change happening in my retirement plan unless it's for the positive. But unfortunately those are not guaranteed. And so you can change for the positive, but you can also change for the negative. So instead of variable annuities, we like to call them scary able annuities because if it starts declining in value, not only are those fees that you're paying, somewhere between 3 and 6% on average are eating into all of the gains or adding to the potential losses that you are experienced. So, you know, the third type is probably the best type of annuity to protect you from both the downside while still allowing you upside potential more so than a fixed annuity would traditionally give.

Mike Zaino:
And so we've talked about this before on the show. We kind of, you know, liken it to Goldilocks and the Three Bears, where a fixed indexed annuity protects and grows your wealth, whereas a variable annuity might be too hot in that it is in the market, it is at risk. You are paying fees and a fixed annuity might be too cold because just like a bank CD, they traditionally do not beat inflation on a consistent basis because of the low interest. But a fixed indexed annuity is just right. And the reason that it's just right is because you have the opportunity to participate in market linked gains that are tied to a specific index. And there are plenty of indices that you can choose from, whether it's the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq. And, you know, those are two of the biggest ones or several proprietary indices from Goldman Sachs, Barclays Bank. I mean, there are huge money managers that are globally recognised that have indices that you can tie your money to only participate in the gains and be protected from the downside. Guess what? You still maintain liquidity. So if you need to have money, lump sum and you know little Johnny gets himself in trouble, you can reach in and grab ten grand or 20 grand up to 10% Typically for no fee, you're just going to pay the tax, just as if you had taken it as income.

Mike Zaino:
You can set these up for growth. You can set them up for income. Or if you don't need the money for a few years and then eventually you want to turn on income, you can set them up for a combination of growth and income. A lot of folks lost money last year. I'm talking between, you know, 19 and 35%. If you were 100% invested in the markets, many of the fixed indexed annuity carriers are actually offering bonuses to help folks who are. Humbled last year, recuperate some of their losses and, you know, get back to being whole again. And so, you know, when you consider all of the upside potential, the downside protection, the ability to get a bonus and very, very low, if any fees, okay, We have them that have zero fees, punch holes in it because traditionally people for their income portion of their portfolio would put their money into bonds. Well, guess what Bonds did last year? They only had their worst year in the history of the bond market. Okay. You should never pay for anything that is going to lose money. In other words, an underperforming asset when you can and have the ability to put your money into something that gives you a reasonable rate of return and downside protection.

Producer:
Yeah, that's right. It's kind of like best of both worlds there. You can benefit from the growth in the market, but you can also be protected from any of that downside. And that is why we kind of call it the Goldilocks annuity there, the fixed indexed annuity. And you can find out more about it by going to Money Matters with Mic.com. Money matters with Mike, it's all one word.com and request that free consultation or call him 704 5601573. What are some reasons here, Mike, that somebody might want to do that? Obviously we talked about, you know, annuities being a potential for them, particularly that fixed indexed annuity. Just now as you were explaining that and doing a very a very good and thorough job of it, explaining it in plain language so people can actually understand, which is one thing that I enjoy about you, is because that's what you do, you break it down so people can actually understand it rather than all the industry jargon and stuff. But what are some reasons that people might want to give you a call and or go to the website and and meet with you?

Mike Zaino:
Well, I mean, I think you just said one of them right there. Right. If you don't understand the language that is being used by your financial professional, come talk to me because I will break it down into plain English. And I don't care whether you have a high school education, a middle school education, or you have a PhD or multiple PhDs, I will make sure that you understand to the fullest everything that we're discussing within your plan. So that's one reason if you don't have a formal retirement plan, well, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. It's time that you get one, okay? And we can put one into place for you. Newsflash, you don't have to have hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in order to put a formal retirement plan into place, if you have one. And you don't understand the risk that you're taking with your investments, then you want to sit down and have me explain that to you. So I've sat down with folks and I'm looking at them and I'm like, You're a gambler, huh? And they're like, What are you talking about? I'm like, Well, you're 100% in the market. And when I break that down into dollars and cents and say, what happens if the market loses 20 or 30%? Are you comfortable losing? And I actually calculate what 20 to 30% of their retirement portfolio is.

Mike Zaino:
And I watch the look of horror overcome their face and they're like, no, I had no idea I was that exposed. Well, guess what, folks? That happened to my mother personally back in 2008 during the financial crisis, she had no idea that she was as exposed as she was. And because of that, she lost 43%. Now, mind you, I was not managing her money back then. I am now. So if you don't understand how you should manage the risk in your portfolio, especially as you age and you get older, we should probably sit down. If you're not sure whether or not you should pay your house off or your vehicle off, we should probably sit down. If you don't have a health care plan in place and ways to pay for the rising cost of health care, guess what? You might want to give me a call and put a plan into action so that when those things happen, because it's not a matter of if, when those things happen, you have the plan and the finances to be able to meet it head on. So those are just a few reasons, right off the cuff of why somebody would want to give me a call, why somebody would want to have a discovery call and then an actual consultation and become a client.

Producer:
Yeah. And it boils down to, you know, just just taking action, really, and making sure that you are taking charge of your own destiny, as it were, because the system as it's set up right now is, you know, a lot of people might think, oh. I'll be fine in my retirement because I'll have Social Security, I'll have Medicare, and that's all I have to worry about. But they might not necessarily understand their options that go along with Social Security and especially Medicare, because it's kind of an alphabet soup. So there's a lot that goes into it. Yeah.

Mike Zaino:
And so many people love the kitchen drawer mentality, right? They plan on getting to it later, but they stick it in the kitchen drawer, they shut the door and then life gets in the way. And the next thing you know, it's several years down the road.

Producer:
Bottom line, don't procrastinate. It's not a good thing. Don't just put it in the kitchen drawer like you said, and wait for another day, because a lot of times that other day doesn't necessarily arrive. And there you are, still with no plan in place and trying to depend on Medicare, trying to depend on Social Security. And you need more than that. You really do. Go to money matters with mic.com folks. Money matters with mic.com or give them a call. (704) 560-1573.

Producer:
Here's the cost cutter of the week.

Producer:
So all year long, you know, we have been sharing on occasion here on the show 23 retirement cost cutters for 2023. And this week, Mike, we're going to focus on how you can save on your meals by cutting back on dining out. Actually, I put together a kind of a a little bit of a summary of this retirement cost cutter for this week. Let's take a listen to that And we'll we'll chat about it for a second. On the other side, even with inflation, eating at home is often cheaper than dining out. I'm Matt McClure with the Retirement.Radio Network. Powered by AmeriLife, food costs are up for everyone these days, and when you get sticker shock at the grocery store, you may be tempted to consider dining out more often. But think again. Prices are up at restaurants too. Chef David Burke recently told CNBC some of the reasons why.

Producer:
Not changing.

David Burke:
The menu not one menu, but printing menus every day. Paper goods are through the roof to gloves that we wear in the kitchen are through the roof, so there's a lot of deep fryer oil. The oil that goes into the deep fryers, which we don't really look at, we always look at the protein prices that all of those little all of those ancillary things are through the roof with pricing.

Producer:
Energy costs are also having an impact on restaurants. Not only have they driven up the price of shipping food from producers, but gas prices are driving up labor costs as well. Burke said employees who live farther away from restaurants are asking for pay increases to offset the increased cost of driving in every day. So cooking at home will still be cheaper than dining out. In most cases. Many large and local grocery stores offer discounts for seniors, but if you're not able to drive, you can also order groceries online and have them delivered directly to you. If you do decide to dine out, say, for a special occasion, try to find a restaurant that offers senior discounts. So have you thought about cutting back on dining out? It's a key question to consider, and it's one of the 23 retirement cost cutters for 2023 with the Retirement.Radio Network powered by Emeril Live, I'm Matt McClure.

Producer:
You're listening to Money Matters with Mike. Listen closely, because money matters.

Producer:
So cutting back on dining out is, boy, that can save you a lot of money, even in a day and age like this, where we've had a lot of inflation at the grocery store and you're still I mean, you know, like things like the price of eggs, those have come down, thankfully, since, you know, really spiking a few months back. There's still not quite where they were. But God knows we're thankfully not paying, you know, an arm and a leg and a and a beak and all that stuff for a dozen eggs now. But even with that inflation at the grocery store, Mike, I mean, we are talking about it still being a lot cheaper. Cook at home, save yourself some money. And then when you want to go out for a treat or for a special occasion, you can dine out then.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah. So I know I mean, I don't know about our listeners out there, but when my wife and I go out, I find it very, very difficult unless we're, you know, eating quick serve food to to go out and spend less than $100. Okay. And that's a lot of money to consistently do each and every single week, especially if you don't really have that extra disposable income in your budget. Right. I mean, if you have it more power to you go out there and enjoy life, but just understand where your money is going and that if you can eat at home a little bit more often, not go out to eat so much. And then I'll even expand on that a little bit more. So many people like to drive on their way to work and stop off at Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts and pick up a coffee. Well, if you're doing that five times a week, you're probably spending upwards of $30 on coffee where you can buy a can of Folgers or whatever. Your brand of choice of coffee grounds is, brew it at home and get a tervis that will keep it warm for your journey into work and save yourself lots and lots and lots of money, right? So you got to be cognizant of all the little places where you might be hemorrhaging those dollars if you're finding it difficult. And at the end of the month, you're asking yourself, where did all my money go? Well, I think we just identified a couple of them.

Producer:
There you go. And that's really what these 23 retirement cost cutters for 2023 are all about. And we have a free report, folks, that we can send you with those cost cutter ideas. It's a great report with, of course, 23 retirement cost cutters for this year, which is 2023, just in case you're checking your calendar and a lot of great tips in there. Some things that might be, you know, things that you have thought of before, more things that maybe you haven't thought of. But if you want to get your hands on it, you can go to MoneyMattersWithMike.com or give him a call at (704) 560-1573. And really, Mike, I mean there are a lot of great suggestions in there, not only things like, you know, the little things cutting back on dining out and all of that, but even having to do with the big things in life, you know, things like, you know, mortgages and and, you know, cars and all of this stuff. Taking a look at the big picture and at the little things. And it all does add up.

Mike Zaino:
It does add up. And if you find yourself now that we're in July going, well, heck, we're halfway through the year and I haven't gotten any of those 23 cost cutters for 2023. Give us a call, reach out on Facebook, go to the website, however you want to reach out. We'll get it to you when you can double up from here on out.

Producer:
That's right. And, you know, I mean, that'll be a great idea because then you'll save money twice as fast if you do two of them a week.

Mike Zaino:
So they like the Doublemint twins.

Producer:
There you go. Exactly. So. That's right. Well, Mike, talking about, you know, there's been sort of the economy is very weird right now. And I think we all know, you know, we had a jobs reports that that have been stronger than than anticipated. I think this year even with the increases in interest rates. But at the same time, we've seen a lot of these big especially tech companies laying off a bunch of workers. We've had the, you know, the Writer's Guild strike and all of that. So that means those people have not been going to their offices and things like that every day. So it's a weird thing. It's like this strange dynamic about in in the economy here lately, but still at the same time, a lot of people are changing jobs. And so that means a lot of changes potentially in their retirement plan because obviously with a new job comes a new one of those retirement plans we were talking about earlier, 401 K or 403 B or TSP or any of the other, you know, initials or acronyms or numbers that we want to we want to talk about. So that means a lot of change, right? And so they need to be prepared for that.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah. And so, you know, there are several things that one can do with a 401. K or employer sponsored plan. So whether it's a 401. K, a 403, B, a 457 a TSP. And if you're a government employee. If you've left that place of employment, you have options. So the first thing that you should probably do is, is read your summary plan description, which is going to contain all of the rules that govern your actual plan. And if you need help, kind of deciphering what that means, then please pick up a phone and give us a call. We will definitely help you with that. And then once you understand, you have to actually decide what it is that you want to do with your money. For an example, if your investments are actually performing well, I want to know what you're doing. Then you may want to keep the funds in your account. But if on the other hand, they're not performing well, which is 99.9% of what I've seen over the last year or so, then you might not want to leave your 401. K or employer sponsored plan at your old employer. After all, there is nobody looking out for it. So I often use the analogy. It's kind of like if you move a house, you wouldn't leave your car that you drive every single day parked into the garage of the house that you no longer own.

Mike Zaino:
So you might consider rolling those funds over either into your new employer's 401. K plan if their plan is more favorable. Or you might consider rolling it into an IRA, an individual retirement agreement. Older workers will still have more options and may want to consider more defensive strategies as they begin to prepare for retirement. But no matter if you're young, no matter if you're old, you absolutely have to factor in time. You must act fast, because once your money leaves your former employer's plan, you only have 60 days. If you do it yourself to roll those funds over into a qualified retirement account. And if you miss that deadline, you'll have to report that money as income on your tax return. And not only will you be crucified in the taxes, but you may also need to pay an early withdrawal penalty if you're under the age of 59.5. So if you would like some help, some free help understanding all of your options and making sense of the complicated landscape of employer based retirement plans, do not hesitate to get in touch with us. Don't stick that in the kitchen drawer and procrastinate over it. We love meeting listeners from the show and helping them feel more confident and prepared about their retirement.

Producer:
Yeah, that's right. It's it's fun. You know, a funny thing when you think about your retirement plan being there all the time and just maybe you imagined it would just follow you, you know, like a little puppy dog when you change jobs. No, that's. That's not a thing that happens.

Mike Zaino:
No. And you might have multiple puppies, right? So you might have multiple 401 K's because you have gone from job to job to job. And we can help you simplify all of that, bring them all in together into one account so that you have one set of paperwork and just make things that much simpler as you progress through life.

Producer:
And simple is right up my alley. Let me just say it is one of the things that I love. And light, simple and free, are two of my favorites. So we got you covered really with both of those here. When we're talking about the free consultations.

Mike Zaino:
Free is for me.

Producer:
That's right. Exactly. And then it rhymes. But MoneyMattersWithMike.com is the place to go. MoneyMattersWithMike.com or give him a call 704 5601573. All right Mike so the results are in here and we've got some big takeaways from a survey by Nationwide. It's actually their annual advisor authority survey. They do it, of course, each and every year. And so there are some some pretty revealing things here. Walk us through some of these top line results.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah, Well, so I mean, I guess the biggest takeaway that I took from the article was that in today's environment, the people who responded to that survey said that the financial crises that that that we've been experiencing feel more like an inevitability than a possibility. Okay. And 20% of investors expect to face two or more additional financial crises in their lifetime and nearly half expect to face three or more. And why is that? Well, we just come out of a global pandemic and we're looking at a recession. The 2008 Great Recession is. Still very, very fresh in people's minds. And so when you look at all of that stuff, it is no wonder that nearly 4 in 10 investors believe that the United States is already in a financial crisis and 3 in 10 believe that we're approaching one right now. So, I mean, across all generations, one thing is clear whether you are Gen X, whether you're a baby boomer, whether you are Gen Z or a millennial, it doesn't matter. One thing is clear, and that is it helps to have a plan because nearly 9 in 10 feel more confident or investors feel much more confident that they can make the right investment decisions even during extreme financial crises by having a plan in place for their investments. Okay. And investors who have an actual financial professional that they can count on and that they can go to with questions or concerns, they feel much less nervous and more confident than those who don't have a financial professional in their lives as far as their ability to protect their finances in the event of another financial crisis. After living through all of these prior episodes.

Producer:
Yeah, and that's great. And it makes total sense to me. After having worked with you for for as long as I have now going on going on a year here, we, you know, talk about, you know, all the time having a personalized plan just just for you. And that's that's really what you do day in and day out because, you know, you not only plan because if all the times were good and if there was steady growth in the markets and all of this and and, you know, you didn't have to plan just in case things go south in the markets, things go south in the economy. If you didn't have to plan for that, it'd be easy. You know, we could all we could all just do it ourselves. And that's great. But that's what you do every day is help people prepare for the what ifs in life, because inevitably the what ifs are going to become the reality at some point.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah. A good buddy of mine used to say if ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a merry Christmas. Right? And so you have to be able to address those what ifs and have a plan just in case they occur. And if they don't, hey, great. But if they do, at least you are prepared.

Producer:
Yeah, that's right. And and being prepared is really, as you see from the results of that survey, one of the things that can not only give you peace of mind, but can give you, you know, that that knowledge of what to do going forward because you know you have it in place. It can automatically happen when let's say if you have if the market goes south, you have a fixed indexed annuity. For example, the market loses 30% in a year. That portion of your portfolio that is in that annuity does not lose a penny. So you've got that safe portion, right?

Mike Zaino:
And so I'm just going to just harp on that. If you lose 30% in the year due to the market volatility and you have to gain 43% just to get back to even and that takes time, right? That's another reason that so many Americans are purchasing annuities at record paces because they understand that, you know, if you lose money and you get that same percentage right back, you're still not back to even. And getting back to even takes time. Unfortunately, that's a luxury that especially those nearing retirement and who are already retired do not have, namely because they're no longer contributing to the plan and again, goes all the way back to I'm bringing it full circle, those sequence of returns. And let's think back to the lost decade, the first ten years of this millennium from 2000 to 2009. Right. The first three years saw significant declines in the S&P 500. Then after that, there were a few years of growth before 2008 absolutely pummeled the markets. And then if you look at that whole decade as a whole, you still end up down 9.1% for an entire decade. And that is why it's referred to as the lost decade. And that is why consumers are flocking to the protections afforded to them by the fixed indexed annuities. So all things to keep in mind as you're ruminating on everything that we talked about for the remainder of the weekend, go.

Producer:
To MoneyMattersWithMike.com reach out request that free consultation it is absolutely free of any cost free of any obligation to continue on It's an exploratory thing and Mike will help you by giving you that full picture of your retirement plan, your retirement journey, and help you make something better of it. So money matters with Mike. Dot com is the website and the phone number is. 704 5601573.

Producer:
It's this week in history.

Producer:
Some very interesting and historical things happened this week in our history. Mike July 7th in 1930. Boy, one of the biggest public works projects ever in the country. The construction of the Hoover Dam began. The concrete arch Gravity Dam sitting above the Colorado River. It actually took nearly 30 years to build the dam, a major tourist attraction, 7 million visitors there each year. And boy, it is talk about just a manmade marvel, really. It's it's a really, really huge piece of public works.

Mike Zaino:
And if you haven't seen the Hoover Dam, I highly suggest that. I remember going out there. I've been there several times and just looking out over its vastness and the amount of water that it does actually dam up. I mean, that is astounding to think that they put this together way back when they did and it still stood the test of time and is operational and functional today.

Producer:
They knew what they were doing. Tell us about what happened on July 7th, 1981, Mike.

Mike Zaino:
Well, so America had attorney Sandra Day O'Connor become the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court. She was nominated, of course, by President Ronald Reagan and served on the Supreme Court from 1981 all the way through 2006. And during her time, some publications ranked O'Connor as among the most powerful women in the world.

Producer:
Yeah, definitely so, because, you know, being on the Supreme Court and being the first woman to serve there and you know, of course, it taking all the way until 1981 for that to happen is kind of crazy to think about these days. But great trailblazing woman there. July 8th, 1776. Big date in our country's history because on this date in 1776, the Liberty Bell tolled to announce the Declaration of Independence. That's one of those things where you can truly say and the rest is history. Right?

Mike Zaino:
No doubt about it. And then on July 9th, okay, on this date in 1956, we had a birthday. American actor and filmmaker Tom Hanks was born. And he is one of the most recognizable film stars in the world. He starred in major hit films like Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, Cast Away, Captain Phillips, and most recently, he's in a in a movie called a Man called Otto, which is phenomenal as well. But more importantly, on July 9th, Mike Zaino took Kerry Zaino as his bride back in 1994. So this is our 29th year anniversary, and I could not be more happy with that decision. It has paid dividends beyond dividends.

Producer:
Well, that's awesome. I you know, happy anniversary to you both. That's amazing. And you have obviously you've obviously done well. You married up, I can tell you that.

Mike Zaino:
Yeah, definitely out kicked my coverage.

Producer:
Yeah. Well, there you go, folks. Those are some great things that happened. The greatest, of course, being what happened on July 9th here 29 years ago. Well, Mike, just about time for us to start wrapping things up here. But I wanted to just emphasize, you know, we talked about a little bit earlier in the show that report that we can send a couple of reports actually we've talked about already in the show, the 23 retirement cost cutters for 2023, and also talked about the widow's tax at the top of the show and explained a little about what that is. But those are not it when it comes to the reports that we can send absolutely free. No no obligation there at all. No cost as well to our listeners. Talk about some of the others here that we have on hand and we can just send right out to folks.

Mike Zaino:
If you didn't really understand the reasonings why all the banks went into failure this year, even those that were too big to fail from the financial crisis back in 2008. We have, you know, reports that will break that down for you and explain that to you. If you want to learn about tax free investments and how you can multiply your tax savings throughout the entirety of your financial journey, then reach out to us. If you don't fully comprehend the Secure Act, much less the Secure Act 2.0 that went into effect January 1st of this year. Please reach out because we can show you what that means for your retirement and then bond replacement. We talk about that a lot, but a lot of people don't even understand what bonds are. Ah, right. Much less how to go about replacing them in their portfolio. So all of these reports are just designed to provide you and arm you with enough ammunition so that you can take action and impact your financial future in a much more positive way than if you just do nothing And you can.

Producer:
Go to money matters with Mic.com money matters with Mic.com to request any of those reports. And you can also call 704 5601573. Well, that'll just about do it for this edition of Money Matters with Mike. Mr. Zaino. I am so glad to get to spend every weekend with you here on the air and on the podcast as well. I appreciate you and all that you do, the knowledge that you bring. And hey, happy anniversary again, sir.

Mike Zaino:
Matt I appreciate that. And the feeling is mutual. Without you, the show does not exist in the form, but more importantly, without our listeners out there in listener land, whether you're listening to us in the Charlotte metro area on Re or whether you are listening to us, wherever you might be in the world on podcast. Thank you. Whatever you're doing this weekend, I hope you do it to its fullest extent and as always, make it a great day.

Producer:
Thanks for listening to Money Matters With Mike. You deserve to work with a financial and insurance expert who can offer strategies for protecting and growing your hard earned money. To schedule your free no obligation consultation visit MoneyMattersWithMike.com or pick up the phone and call 704 560 1573.

Producer:
Not affiliated with the United States government. Mike Zaino does not offer tax, legal or investment advice. Consult with your tax advisor or attorney regarding specific situations. Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice. These opinions are not intended as investment advice, nor do they predict future performance of any product. All information provided is believed to be from reliable sources. However, we make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of any statement. This information is intended to be educational in nature and does not provide a guarantee or a specific result. All copyrights and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Amara Life assumes no responsibility or liability for the content of this message. The information contained herein is provided on an as is basis, with no guarantees of completeness, accuracy, usefulness, timeliness or the results obtained from the use of this information.

Producer:
Fixed annuities, including multiyear guaranteed rate annuities, are not designed for short term investments and may be subject to restrictions, fees and surrender charges as described in the annuity contract. Guarantees are backed by the financial strength and claims paying ability of the issuer. Remember all of Mike's listeners receive a free financial consultation just for listening to the show. Visit MoneyMattersWithMike.com to learn more and schedule an appointment. Thanks for listening to Money Matters with Mike and subscribing wherever you listen to podcasts.

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