APPROVED_YAR_FullShow_061722.mp3: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix
APPROVED_YAR_FullShow_061722.mp3: 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 your American Retirement with your hosts. Randy Sams and Kale Simpson get set for a full hour of financial information and economic news affecting your bottom line. Randy and Kale work hard each day to educate Americans like you on how to reach the financial freedom they worked so hard for by protecting and growing their hard earned money. And they can help you, too. So now let's start the show. Here are your hosts, Randy Sams and Kale Simpson.
Kale Simpson:
Good afternoon. This is Kale Simpson with your American retirement dot com 101.1. The answer here in central Arkansas. Everybody's having a great day. So excited to be doing the radio show and the podcast again this morning, talking about challenges facing facing retirees today. I am again accompanied by my colleague, Mr. Randy Sams here in central Arkansas. We're excited to talk to you guys a little bit about a few things going on in the economic world today that everyone is facing on a daily basis. Think you will get a lot of value and a lot of information out of the radio show today. Excited to talk about multiple items as we move forward. But but first and foremost, if some of you guys probably know, others may not. This is Randy and myself. This is our first actual podcast and radio show for your American retirement. So we are super excited to bring the dialogue and the information to another level and to another scale for you guys. On one, on 1.1, the answer. Before I get started, I will let my colleague Randy Sams, who is the president and CEO of SMG Financial, talk a little bit about himself and what he brings to the table from a CEO standpoint driving the ship. And then I will piggyback on Randy, tell you a little bit about me, my family, my boys and what I do. And we will delve into the topics that we have on hand from an economic standpoint. So hang tight. Randy, can you hear me, sir?
Randy Sams:
I gotcha. Kale, thank you so much. I appreciate it. Hey, welcome to our first show on one on 1.1, the answer, your American Retirement with Mr. Kale Simpson and Randy Sams, excited to be able to speak to you about your retirement future here in America. Again, Randy Sam's little background. I was I am a native of Little Rock. I now reside in Benton with my lovely wife of 39 years, my youngest son, and a standard poodle. My oldest son is in Dallas, but we'll talk about him probably in later shows. But I've been in the business for 38 years. I started when I was ten years old, I'm joking, which I started when I was ten years old, but for 38 years. So those of you who cannot see us since we're on the radio, but when you see us live, you're probably going to have a difficult time figuring out which one I am versus Kale. I'm kidding mine. I'll have a few more gray hairs than than Mr. Kale does. But I've been in the business for 38 years. I've been on both the independent agent side, and I've also been on the corporate side. So for. I guess 18 to 25 years. I was an executive of two of the top insurance companies in the nation. My last position, I served as the president and of the senior division. So that's really where I got I guess involved in the senior market was when I started in my last position for 18 years and beginning to realize that at that time and still today, there were 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 every day now for probably what, the next seven, eight, ten years? So there's a lot of folks that are turning 65, getting ready to retirement, that need assistance, need to help with retirement.
Randy Sams:
And so that's what really got me interested and really started investigating what we needed to do as a company to help our clients. A little background. I went to the University of Arkansas. This is funny. I went to the University of Arkansas to be an architect. After about three years of architecture school, I realized that I was tired of math and thought I'd better change my major. So I changed my major into management and never thought I would be in the insurance business. If you would have told me that I was going to be in sales. I would have thought you probably needed to have a psychological exam done. But here I am today, 38 years later in the insurance business, loving every moment of it, helping folks. As a native of Little Rock, like I said, moving to Benton graduated from the University of Arkansas. My education. I also have my ACLU designation. These are industry designations. From the American College. I'll have my certified annuity specialist designation from the Institute of Business and Finance, and I am a qualified member of MD. So I appreciate everything. I'm looking forward to kicking off this first show. And Kale, I'll flip it back to you so you can introduce yourself to the people.
Kale Simpson:
I feel like I learn a little bit more about you every single time that we that we talk about family and background and all that good stuff. But hey, guys, real fast, I can't speak highly enough about about Randy Sams. He is probably the one of the most integral parts of the equation and me being where I am today. But I'll I'll kind of expound on that here, here briefly, but a little bit about me. So I graduated from Arkansas State University, which is on the other side of Arkansas, then the University of Arkansas. So as Randy is calling the Hogs Woo pig suey, my wife and I were on the other side of the state. I went up there to try to play baseball. And I'm just I'm a huge baseball fan, but ended up picking up golf clubs instead. So anyway, when I graduated in 2004, I was recruited to one of the top top banks in the world, top financial institutions in the world. So I have a I have a bachelor's in corporate finance and a minor in accounting. I'm also a certified annuity specialist, as Randy Sams explained earlier. So I have my CAS designation along with my ALMA designation, which I'm an associate with the Life Management Institute with respect to life insurance, health insurance, etc.. I have to tell you, I'm I'm married to my beautiful wife, Nancy. We've been married since 2009. My roommate in college was going to ask her out and I thought I would beat him to the punch.
Kale Simpson:
And so I did. And the rest is history. And so we've been together since 2009. She is the gifted and talented facilitator at the elementary school that's nearby here in central Arkansas, here in North Little Rock. She loves every minute of it, especially now. It's summertime and she doesn't have to go to work every day. She gets to hang out by the swimming pool, which is awesome. But anyway, I've got two boys, I've got an eight year old and a six year old. My eight year old is a stud on the baseball field and my six year old is up to his eyeballs in soccer. They are super competitive and wonderful kids. Randy can attest to that. I am blessed beyond imagination with these boys. And then we also have three dogs. I don't know why we have three dogs, but we have three dogs. You can ask my wife, send an email your American retirement, send an email and ask my wife, why do we have three dogs? But anyway, so when I started in the banking industry back in 2004, I wanted to work for a bank because that's where all the money is. The banks had all the money. Well, my starting salary in 2004 was excuse me, 2004 was 24,000 per year. I saved my very first pay stub, Randy, you know, just just to have it.
Randy Sams:
Got a break.
Kale Simpson:
I soon realized that there were ways to advance in the corporate world, so I worked my way up the corporate ladder and continue to do that. In 2008, 2009, the the Great Recession impacted all of us. So I left the banking industry when my job was relocated to Memphis after we bought a house and got into the insurance business. That's where I met Randy. And Randy put me on the path to understand what the insurance industry is about and the ways to be successful and to help as many clients as possible. So that's how I got to meet Randy. And then we we touched base in 2015, 2016, when he started seeing the markets management group and asked me to join him as one of his managing partners. And that's what we decided to do. And here we are. It's 2022. Randy It's hard to believe that it's already been six or seven years, but we are we are still moving right along.
Randy Sams:
Sir, when I left the corporate scene in 2014, you're supposedly retired but started SMG Financial Senior Markets Management Group. I was, you know, going from a corporate position to independent. I was lost as a goose in a hailstorm. All right. So it was like I no longer had someone that could come help me do my i.t. I no longer had hr. I no longer had an assistant. It was randy. If the computer went. Down. I've played it. So I've been blessed to have you with me faithfully. We are. We have a partnership. We're in this thing together. And our objective is to help as many clients that we possibly can. To have a secure retirement, and that's what retirement is all about. So I'm excited about what we have to offer today and looking forward to many more shows.
Kale Simpson:
Perfect. So, Randy, if we want to delve into some of the biggest challenges, the topic of our radio show today, some of the biggest challenges that our retirees, our clients are facing on a daily basis. One of the top things that I know, I hear you here as well. Clients are worried about inflation. Everything costs more money. And unless wages continue to rise to combat inflation and we're going to be in an inflationary environment and clients have questions, clients have concerns, and we have to address these concerns on a daily basis. So that was one of the things, Randy, that I wanted to talk to you about. We've got to go to a break, guys. We'll be back in just a few moments. Thanks so much.
Producer:
You're listening to your American retirement.
Producer:
Fixed annuities, including multi year 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.
Kale Simpson:
Hey, guys, welcome back. Your American retirement. Your American retirement. Biggest challenges facing retirees today. Guys, we have Sam Davis with Sam Davis out of Atlanta, Georgia, senior producer for for for our company in our broadcast. Knows a lot about about about the market and what's going on in the world has few things that he'd like to share with us. So, Sam, can you hear me okay?
Sam Davis:
Yeah. Thanks, Kale. Thanks, Randy. Happy to be part of the show today. And just thanks. Just a reminder to everyone out there as we're talking. Enjoy the conversation. We're glad you're here. Listening you can visit your American retirement dot com to learn more that's your American retirement dot com to learn more or give them a call 8669907664. And you'll find the phone number online as well at your American retirement. But I'm glad you guys are starting the conversation with inflation, because inflation is seriously affecting those retirees that are on that fixed income. You know, people that are getting ready for retirement are preparing for a living in an America that's getting more and more expensive every day. And yet gas prices, guys, national average is right at about $5 a gallon. Can you believe it?
Randy Sams:
No, no, it's crazy.
Sam Davis:
Yeah. So let's just walk through a couple of these examples, guys, starting with a gallon of gas, you know, 1991, about 30 years ago, a gallon of gas was a dollar 14. And today we're looking at $5. And then right below that, consider what do you put in the gas in new pickup truck 30 years ago, $15,000 fresh off the lot today. You're paying bare minimum, I think 40 grand. But, you know, if you're going to get any option at all, you're going to be paying 50 grand or more for a new truck.
Kale Simpson:
That is insane.
Randy Sams:
Any options to say? Yes, sir?
Kale Simpson:
Hey, real quick, Sam, I'll give you a quick story because this is happening actually tomorrow morning. My wife, again, she teaches the gifted and talented program at the elementary school. She literally drives a mile to work and back. So she leased a traverse in 2019 and the lease is due on 6/12. So we decided to buy the vehicle. And the reason being is the sticker price on that vehicle when we did it in 2019 was about $50,000. So now if the dealership if we turned it in, the dealership would have to pay over $50,000 to get that used vehicle back. So they would have to pay 53,000 and change. And I know the guy that's the sales manager there at Russell Chevrolet, and he said, look, if it's me, I would buy the vehicle. You owe 28,000 on the vehicle. I'd buy the vehicle. If not, then you're going to have to be on a waiting list to get a new vehicle. In addition to paying what you just mentioned, 50, 60, 70,000 for another vehicle. So it is it's absolutely mind blowing to look at even even the car industry at this point, right?
Sam Davis:
Yeah. Yeah. It's funny, I was I was just having a conversation with a buddy the other day. I bought a car, not a new car, but only a couple of years old. 2018 model last summer just had a few thousand miles on it. I think it was a lease or something before, so I bought it last year. Taking a look at the Kelley Blue Book. It's worth more today, a year later than the day I bought it and I've put over 10,000 miles on it. Typically, cars are vehicles of any kind are one of the more depreciating assets you can own. But it's just wild. You know, with the supply chain shortages that are going on out there that we're seeing, things are getting a little topsy turvy. You know, taking a look at another inflation example 30 years ago, of course, home values in Arkansas are a bit below the national average. But 30 years ago, a new house, $145,000. Today, $450,000. Just imagine being a first time home buyer trying to trying to swing that as interest rates climb up. It's while.
Kale Simpson:
In looking at interest rates to Sam. You know, during the middle of the pandemic, I think Randy mentioned to you and me both, he jumped in no, jumped in and refinanced the property from and from an arm, which you guys if you don't know an arm, is an adjustable rate mortgage. I think, Sam, you also had a similar story as well. Nancy and I did the same thing where we refinanced in the middle of the pandemic when interest rates were I mean I mean zero before these rate hikes. Now, interest rates I think the the mortgage application statistics that came out yesterday, mortgage new mortgage applications are at a 22 year low right now just due to rising interest rates. So you couple rising interest rates with super inflated housing prices. Can anybody afford the house that they could a year and a half ago? Well, the answer is easy. No.
Randy Sams:
But all of this goes back to play Kale, what you and I do. And we speak to our clients. You know, our our focus is on retirees or those who are about to go into retirement to try to plan for them. So here's what the deal is. As prices grow faster than wages, it makes it harder for retirees and our family to what, pay their bills and cover their expenses. That's right. So what we deal with is there's two things that usually kill retirees in retirement. Number one is stress. Number two is rocking chairs. What I mean by stress. All right. You're stressed out because you don't know if your retirement funds are going to last. So your objective when you go into retirement is to hopefully have your retirement fund. Not. Be depleted. In other words, we don't want your retirement fund to to reach zero before your blood pressure does. So a lot of people are stressed out with that. Number two is rocking chairs. People get into retirement and they're afraid they're going to spend all their money because, you know, when you go into into retirement, every day is Saturday. I don't have to go to work. I can go play golf, I can go play tennis, I can go shopping, I can call Amazon. I can do whatever I want to do. We can go take trips. But when you're stressed out and you're concerned about your retirement funds running out before you pass away, guess what happens then? They pass away because you sit on the front porch and you just use a rocking chair.
Randy Sams:
You don't have any exercise, you don't do anything. So that's what I'm looking at is that's what we do is we try to help folks when it comes to this that, you know, this is this is something that you have to think about. And for people who have just retired. Kale Just think about the folks that retired, what, three or four years ago. Where are they at right now if they don't have a pension, if they haven't set up a, you know, a good retirement plan, if they're just living on Social Security or they may have a, you know, a defined contribution, a41k, are they making withdrawals? Well, we all know what's happening to some of the 401. K values. So if you're taking money out at the same time, the value may be going down. That's not a good formula for success. So, yes, the inflation that we're looking at today, you know, yeah, it affects everybody. But when you're talking about retirement, we have folks who do not have the ability to go out and they're not earning a wage any longer. So, you know, if if that's what happens, if people believe that the goods and services are more costly than they in the future, then where they are right now, what are folks going to do? What's the plan?
Kale Simpson:
You're right. Hey, real quick, I read an article earlier this morning. There's a gentleman, his name is Bill Bengen. You guys probably have heard of him. He's the he's the father of the 4% rule. You guys probably have heard that. And what that means is during retirement, it was advised for many, many years that retirees should spend in the first year or two or three in retirement, approximately 4% of of their nest egg on retirement needs. They have now come out with an article where Mr. Bingen has he's changed the numbers a bit due to all the things that we've just mentioned. So now it is less than 4% that we need to take out.
Randy Sams:
It's like two point something indicator, like 2.5, 2.8. Somewhere in that range it.
Kale Simpson:
Is it's about a percent, a little more than a percent less than the old 4% rule. But what that's doing is, is trying to safeguard that nest egg against running out of money when things cost more money and you still have a constant dollar amount that you're able to spend from your nest egg, then obviously something has to change. And in regards to this particular article, what has to change is spending habits. So. Yeah, absolutely. So there's there's a great article on AARP's website that that Sam has has put up for us. Again, your American retirement dot com, guys. Almost half of Americans fear running out of money in retirement. And actually, there's a statistic that says more seniors are worried about running out of money in retirement than they are worried about dying. Which is just alarming to me. But if you really think about it, my granny will be 86 years old in August. And so if she did not have Social Security or a lifetime income product that pays her regardless of how old she is. And I don't want my granny to be 92 years old and have to go look for a job. That's insane. So there are a lot of moving parts and different factors out there in the world today that we're getting phone calls on a daily basis and we're trying to help navigate the scenery the best we can. Randy And help introduce things like fixed annuities and fixed index annuities to put that piece of the puzzle together to provide what an additional pension or an additional lifetime income paycheck to make sure that we don't have to worry about that scenario playing out in the future, which would be running out of money, obviously.
Randy Sams:
Well, what we deal with, you know, when when a person is working, whether you have a defined benefit or defined contribution, you know your objective. You're in the accumulation mode. All right. So in your working years, you're accumulating. You're accumulating. If the if the market happens to drop, if you're young enough, you can. Survive until it comes back up. But when you're getting close to retirement, what I always tell folks is that the number one thing you have to remove is risk. And what we're talking about right now is inflation risk. All right. So you and I can't control what inflation does. Nobody else can in-flow. It can't can't prevent what inflation does. But you have to have a plan in place to be able to realize that, just like the examples that we've been giving gasoline versus 1991, what it is today, housing prices, what it is today, what was a gallon of milk in 1991? All right. What was a loaf of bread in 1991? What it is today? So what it cost today if inflation continues to rise, as we probably can anticipate, what's those same prices today going to be in three years, five years, ten years? So right risk is what we have to eliminate. And inflation risk is one of the objectives that we that we focus on.
Kale Simpson:
Hey, Randy, real fast. And Sam, we're going to have to go to a break here in just a moment. But I want to throw this out to all of our listeners right now. And this will this will will help pivot into what we want to talk about on very important things to own during retirement here in a moment. But there's also an interesting article. Randy, I spoke to you about this earlier, 80% of all dollars US dollars in existence right now. We're printed in the last 22 months. 80%. So that's an increase from $4 trillion in January of 2020 to over $20 trillion in 2021. So that is a staggering amount of money. And when we talk about inflation, you know, one of the main primary causes of inflation is that it's the increase in money supply. If you have more dollars in circulation, but supply chain issues, demand issues, it's economics 101. That's what gets us into trouble. But guys, five important things that we're going to talk about to own during retirement here in just a few minutes. See you guys back on your American retirement dot com. We're going to go to a break. We'll be back here in a moment. I'm back.
Producer:
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Kale Simpson:
Hey, guys. Kale Simpson, again, welcome back to your American retirement. We are in the middle of a very informative show today. And what we wanted to discuss now is some things that we feel are very, very important during retirement, things to own during retirement. I've got a list of five things that I'll go over. And then, Randy, I'll ask you to to give me your expert opinion on why it's important for people to own these items during retirement. So one is obviously a reliable vehicle. The next one being a home. Third one in emergency fund, obviously insurance. And lastly, your schedule. So in looking at those five items that are. Obviously very important to consider and own during retirement from a vehicle, from a vehicle, a home, an emergency fund, insurance and schedule. Perspective, Randy. Expound a little bit on on a vehicle in the house, why those would would be important for retirees in today's world.
Randy Sams:
Well, I mean, when you're going into retirement, it's supposed to be your happy retirement, right? Like I said, what are the two things that kill most retirees? Stress and rocking chairs. So you have to have a reliable vehicle. You don't want to rely on others to have to get around. Am I going to call my neighbor? Am I going to call my son, my daughter, my aunt, my uncle, you know, my sister and my brother? How about you? As you get older, you probably are going to have medical appointments. So how are you going to get to and from medical appointments? How about going to church? How are you going to get to church on Sunday morning or Sunday night or Wednesday or whenever you worship? How about seeing family? Do you anticipate just your family coming to see you or are you going to get out of the house and go to Montana or go to Atlanta, Georgia, or go to Dallas, Texas, wherever you may want to go? So you've got to have a reliable vehicle that you know that if I get down the road on Interstate 30 and I'm heading towards Dallas, that it's not going to break down. Sam, you got something to say here?
Sam Davis:
Yeah. You know, I just think back to the first time I ever got behind the wheel by myself. I grew up in Kansas, so I got a farm permit at age 14. And just that freedom that you feel when you're behind the wheel of a car or truck and you kind of go wherever you feel like you want to go or wherever you need to go. You know, we're in the United States. We've got great roads, great highway system that connects all our different states and cities, national parks, you know, even in the past few years, like during the pandemic and COVID, when we couldn't get out as much as we wanted, just what a relief it was just to get out there on the open road and go wherever you wanted. So yeah, I definitely think Reliable Vehicles is a great thing that can give you that freedom that you want during retirement.
Randy Sams:
Well, I think that's what it's all about. So, I mean, I'll give you a personal example. My mom, she is 88 years old. And I can recall a couple of years ago when she went out and she actually bought her first vehicle on her own and I'm not going to name the brand, but she bought a vehicle and she came home and first thing she did was call me. And she wanted me to come over and make sure that she made the right choice and all the options and didn't pay too much. And and she was excited. But that was exactly right. Saying what she liked about it was the freedom. So here she is, 88 years old and she's not stuck in her house. She has a sister who is just turned 90. She is in Little Rock, so they can motor back and forth between Little Rock and Benton and visit with each other. They like to go to the, as they call it, the own home place. Go see where they were born and raised outside of Branch, Arkansas. But with that car, she has the freedom. So when she goes to church on Sunday, she didn't have to worry about the church bus coming to pick her up or and I hate to use the word being a burden, but, you know, putting somebody else out to make sure that they come and pick you up at church and drop you off and all that. So, yeah, freedom is what it's all about, so you know it. How are you going to get to where you want to go? If you want to take a road trip or go see friends and family without the vehicle. So we have to have a reliable vehicle when you're going into into retirement.
Sam Davis:
So my grandfather actually just turned 88 last month and he my dad sent me a picture. He took him to get his driver's license renewed and he did get it renewed. His eyesight's still good. I mean, he's really only using the car to get to and from the senior center for breakfast to and from church, you know, seeing his his kids, my aunts and uncles. But, you know, it's much better than just sitting at home waiting on someone else to pick you up and take you somewhere. So I'm glad he's able to do that.
Randy Sams:
We've covered vehicles so well. We've got about a home. Well, you've got to have a place to live, right? You've got to have that security. I don't think I've talked to a lot of retirees that want to have to retire and move in with family members. So that's where I'm going with this. I think you've got to have the freedom, just like having a vehicle. You don't want to move in with your children. You know, I love my mom. Everybody out there probably loves their mom. They love their dad. But there is a certain point in time where, you know. You're going to have them move in with you. What's that going to do to the relationship? Sometimes it's going to work out perfectly. Sometimes it gets a little stressful from time to time because, you know, they're going to have their lifestyle that they that they're used to. And if you've got a husband, a wife, you've got kids, depending on what age, you know, it could be a little bit stressful for them. So having their own home plus you've got to look at this. What is a home? You know, it's an investment. It's an asset. Correct. What what's the price of homes done over the past two years, Kale? Gone up?
Kale Simpson:
Yes, sir, they have.
Randy Sams:
You know, so, you know, I talked to a lot of folks when we were doing consultations that they ask us, you know, should we sell our home? Because home prices have have never been higher than they are today. But then you have to turn around and ask yourself, okay, if I sell my house or yes, I'm going to get a very good offer for the house. It's going to be worth a lot more money than it was five years ago. But where are you going to move to? What are you going to do? Where are you going to go to? You're going to have to buy another house and those prices are going to be like, so having a house, whether you, I guess have a mortgage or whether you have it's mortgage free, you know, it's safe. It's a clean, comfortable, comfortable place for you to to live. What's the old saying? There's no place like home, right?
Kale Simpson:
That's right. There is no place like home.
Randy Sams:
No place like home.
Kale Simpson:
Randy, one of the other things that that we talk to clients about each and every time we're discussing, you know, a a life insurance policy or a retirement account is other other buckets of money, for lack of a better phrase, and then one being an emergency fund. So right now, the consumer is strong, or at least according to a lot of the largest banks in the world. The consumer is strong. Well, the consumer has been flushed with a lot of stimulus money since the pandemic is started. Eventually, we will be being human beings. We will spend money. If you have money in your account, you will spend money. You will go on cruises. I talked to a client talk to a client yesterday, actually, and that's what he said. He said, we're going we're getting ready to go on a cruise to Alaska. Then when we're done with Alaska, we're going in the Caribbean and then from there we're going to the Mediterranean. That's fantastic. But he just retired now. Does he have an emergency fund and money on hand? Yes, and that's what he plans on using. But if you do not have an emergency fund and in an end and an emergency arises, what do you do? So I remember a long time ago, Randy, before we had that that I guess you call it the the conversation. That was a fork in the road in my life where I asked your opinion on one direction or the other and you said, go left, not right. And that fork in the road, I had no emergency fund. I didn't have the ability to go see clients. I had really no form of income. So I was working three jobs at that time just to make ends meet. So if your water heater goes out, Sam, and you don't have $1,000 for someone to take it out of your attic or out of your basement and replace it with an up to date model that'll hurt. Or the transmission goes out in your truck. Where are we going to have the money to rebuild that transmission if we don't have a warranty on the vehicle? Right, Randy?
Randy Sams:
That's true. I mean, you got to have the emergency fund, but, you know, the emergency fund is there. For what? It's kind of easy for emergencies when you need it. But one of the things that you have to look at is when you get into retirement is insurance. We all know that right now we're you know, we're young and healthy, but as we get older, there are things that can happen to us. You may not be as good of health at age 80 as you were when you were 50. So as you get into retirement, one of the things that you have to make sure that you've taken care of is insurance, health care, cost. All right. And I think this is going to be a great subject for us maybe later on down the road, because you've got when you're getting ready to retire, you've got options for your health care. If you're leaving employment and you had group coverage, that group coverage is probably going to end for you whenever you retire. All right. So what are your options at that particular point in time, whether it be 65 or 68 or 70? So health care cost. Can be a big drain on your assets. Yes, sir. Go ahead.
Kale Simpson:
So, Randy, there was an article that I read, and it's kind of a it's a staggering number, but 67% of all bankruptcies are health care related costs that people cannot pay. So, I mean, that's you know, that's that's a huge number by not having the necessary amount of help of health care coverage to cover hospital bills or other medical bills, and it results in bankruptcies. So I thought you would find that statistic interesting as we discuss insurance and various forms of insurance.
Randy Sams:
Yeah, well, I mean, I could I could tell personal stories, but, you know, we're we're running on a kind of a hard break here coming up to the to the next segment. But, you know, long term care insurance, that's something that a lot of people don't think about. Nursing home, long term care facility, assisted living, adult assisted living. Nowadays, a lot of your long term care facility or your long term care insurance policies, they allow for a home health care. So it's no longer you having to leave your house to be able to get that that taken care of for you or having someone to take care of you for a 24 hour shift all the way around the clock. You now can have someone come to your house and it's covered just like if you were in a nursing home or a long term care facility. So, you know, that's something you got to think about. You've got to make sure you have your health care cost. And looking at and considering long term care insurance is something that you've got to look at. And then one thing that we love to talk about is annuities. One thing about an annuity, what does it do? We can set you up with annuities that you can never run out of money. Like I said before, that's what an annuity can do for you. It's income for life. So then what about your schedule? We want you to go out. Like I said earlier, when you go into retirement, every day is Saturday. It's all about enjoying life. You've worked hard. You know, we talk to people, tell all the time, what is it they want to do when they retire? Everybody says, Man, I want to play more golf.
Randy Sams:
I want to play tennis. I want to go take trips. I want to do cruises. I want to buy a new boat. I want to go fishing. But then when they get into retirement, they're afraid they're going to run out of money and then they pass away. And then that money goes to who? It goes to their kids. And what are the kids do? They buy a new boat, they go fishing, they take cruises, they go shopping. So they do all the things with your money that you've worked so hard for over the years that you should have been planning for. That's your retirement. It's your retirement. Use the funds like what you had planned for. You don't want to have to go back to work. That's something that we talk to all the time about. People don't want to have to spend time watching the stock market and manage your assets. I've got a story I can tell when we come back from the next segment. I'll bring that in. But we want you to enjoy your time in retirement with your loved ones, see this great country and maybe even travel the world like Kale gave as an example. Is his client going to take a mediterranean cruise, see the world? So I think we've covered that pretty good. We've got reliable vehicle. We've got a home emergency fund insurance. Your schedule. Five Important Things to own during retirement.
Sam Davis:
All the folks can learn more by going online to your American retirement. That's your American retirement dot com. Or give them a call at 8669907664. Randy and Kale are ready to help you. Just call them 8669907664 or visit them online at your American retirement, CNN.com. More discussion about planning for retirement when we come back.
Kale Simpson:
Thank you, Sam. Just sitting on the dock of the bay.
Producer:
Are you concerned about market volatility, rising taxes, economic uncertainty and how it all could affect your future in retirement? Then tune in to your American retirement to learn how you can protect and grow your hard earned money. Your American retirement. Every Saturday at 1:00 pm, right here on 101.1 FM. The answer Protect your hard earned money today and schedule a free, no obligation consultation now at your American retirement.
Randy Sams:
Welcome back to your American retirement with Randy Sams and Kale Simpson. Glad you could join today's show. We're talking about the biggest challenge challenges retirees face today. I'm going to tell a personal story. Some friends of mine kind of set things up to kind of talk about what our solutions are. You know, how can we combat inflation and solutions? So a group of friends of mine from northeast United States, they retired. They'd never been to the desert. They always wanted to see the desert. They were always up in north east the United States. They all wanted to see that part of the country. So they got together and they planned a trip. They landed in California. They rented a nice, comfortable van, loaded up their luggage in the back, had a full tank of gas, cranked up the AC and took off. They were having a great time. They were seeing all the sights, taking lots of pictures, doing selfies, seeing the mountains, the cactus, all the sand. They'd never seen the desert just enjoying the trip. But every time that they would stop for a photo. They would quickly realize the 110 degree temperature. It was hot. They were from the northeast. They weren't used to that temperature. So they'd all pile back in the van, crank up the AC to the icicle mode. This went on till late afternoon. They were. Stop. Take the photo. Turn up the AC. Stop. Take the photo. Turn up the AC all the time. Just having a great time. Laughing, joking. Then they saw the sign. Nearest gas station 100 miles. They were in the middle of the desert. Nothing in sight. They all looked at the gas gauge. And guess what? It read kale. Less than a quarter of a tank. So what do you think happened next?
Kale Simpson:
Everyone starts to panic.
Randy Sams:
The mood in the van suddenly changed. Everybody from having a great time enjoying the trip. They had waited and planned for all their life till now. They were arguing about how they were going to drive 100 miles on less than a quarter of a tank. Turn the AC off now. The wind is down. That was too hot. Didn't like that idea. Drive slower. Let's take the luggage out. Leave it on the side of the road. Lighten the load so they all head up their own ideas, but they begin to argue so they were no longer getting along. So it's your fault. It's not my fault. It's your fault. It's your job to check the gas. So no longer concerned about all the beautiful scenery taking photos they were now in what, survival mode? You see, they all knew they were going to run out of gas. They just didn't know when. So I use that story to lead in what it's like going into retirement. So everybody's happy, everybody's enjoying life. You see, every day is Saturday. You're playing golf, you're playing tennis, you're shopping, you're taking trips. And then something happens. The market shifts. Your account values go down. What started out as a happy retirement. Now what shifts to survival mode? Trying not to outlive your retirement funds? Trying not to run out of money before you run out of oxygen. So in other words, you know you're going to run out of funds. You just don't know when. So I use this analogy to when I when I'm trying to get folks to understand, Cal, this is what you and I do. We want folks that we deal with our clients to go in and be prepared for a happy retirement. And one of the products that we utilize is annuities.
Kale Simpson:
Your American retirement. It is a resource and we are going to use your American retirement as a very valuable resource. Clients need to understand what is out there and what is available. It is not a cookie cutter type system. Tell clients on a daily basis. Randy, you may be different than Sam. What your financial goals and objectives are are probably going to vary a little bit from Sam's financial goals and objectives, so not every two clients will be alike. Being a brokerage firm and having the capacity to look at multiple A-rated companies across the board with various products and directions that we can look at, Randy gives us the ability to help customize a portion of a retiree's nest egg to do the things that we've discussed in today's show. Combat inflation. Inflation is at the forefront of every newspaper article that you pick up from the Wall Street Journal to The New York Times or any news station that you put on your television. Talks about inflation every time we go. Every time we go and fill up the vehicle, we're looking at inflation or buying groceries. Inflation. We're talking with family members. It's inflation. Annuities can be a helpful resource to combat inflation. But again, annuities are a feasible solution for a portion of your retirement nest egg. There are multiple annuities available in the open market, and I can't stress that enough, Randy, to make sure that all of our listeners understand and know annuities have evolved tremendously over the past ten, 15 years.
Kale Simpson:
You know that, just like I know of that. But what we like to do at your American retirement is help people understand what's available. Once we understand and we can provide a blueprint and a game plan to fill in those different holes and different voids in someone's retirement plan. Randy, we've talked multiple times about income gaps, correct? We've talked about income. Cliff's unfortunately, knowing what the game plan is and to be able to formulate a plan to fill in those holes is incredibly important in someone's retirement. So using the resources that we have, Randy, we can look at annuities to do those things. So from an annuity standpoint, we'll talk to clients about fixed annuities. It's very simple. We'll talk to clients about fixed index annuities and to be completely honest, a little biased. I love fixed indexed annuities because it takes the variable portion out of that equation. You don't have to worry about the ups and downs in the market that a variable annuity might have us exposed to. But we also get to experience the the upside moves in the market and we get to participate on the upside moves, increasing lifetime income and increasing account values along the way.
Randy Sams:
I've used the example of the elevator. All right, so I tell my client, we're getting the elevator and the annuity or your value of account value goes up. And you don't have to worry about. You can stay at that level. And then next next year, the elevator can go up again. All right. So you stay in. So basically what we like about the indexed annuity is that zero is your hero. So if your account value goes up after one year, guess what? You're locked in to that value. If for some reason the index values were to go down the next year, you don't lose what you gained. So zero is your hero. So what our objective is about is about education, because most people, I mean, the average person on the street that you and I deal with, heck, a lot of members of Congress, you got the mass media people. They don't really understand annuities today. The annuity of today is not the annuity of 20 years ago or ten years ago. They've evolved, like you said, you know, 97% of all annuities that are sold right now are deferred annuities. So folks are getting to a certain age and they have gotten to that point where. They are happy with what they've accumulated, but they want to take that risk of loss off the table. And that's what the annuity can do for you, and that's what we do. So, you know, if you want to set yourself up with what I call your your own your self insured pension plan, that's what we can do with the guaranteed income stream.
Kale Simpson:
Now, the last thing that I was going to mention, Randy, is in speaking with clients on a daily basis, you get the same questions that I do. Some clients are mainly concerned with growth, growth growing a nest egg of money without market risks associated with that particular basket of money. Fixed index annuities can accomplish that. They may want to leave a legacy for their heirs. We have products with various companies that that can obviously accomplish that need and goal. And then, like you said, some clients, they need and want to know that they have that lifetime income paycheck. So obviously we can run illustrations and guys at your American retirement we we help clients with multiple facets of the retirement landscape if it's leaving a legacy if it is a lifetime income paycheck like Randy said, which is a pension that will never go away as long as you live or your spouse lives, we can help you with that. Or whether that is a pure accumulation strategy where perhaps someone is younger. I have a client right now. He's nowhere close to retirement. He's 55 years old. He wants to grow that basket of money until he reaches proper retirement age. So we can obviously help him look at various strategies in growing that basket of money without running the risk of looking up one day. And his retirement account has lost 20 or 30% for reasons that he had no influence over whatsoever. So keeping that safety net, making sure that you've got those different annuity options in place, Randy, I think is very powerful in today's in today's world for our retirees.
Randy Sams:
Well, the annuity care, what you were talking about, you know, it can it can be used for four different objectives. If you want a guaranteed lifetime paycheck, you can use the annuity. If you want to leave a legacy to your family, you can use the annuity. If you're just looking for protection of your principal. The annuity is a perfect example of that. But in 2021, just a little statistics here, there were $243 billion in annuity sales. That information is provided through WINK, which is a third party vendor independent that they do a lot of studies, they look at annuities and they get all the information from all the companies. But $243 Billion in annuity sales in 2021. And, you know, a lot of folks are familiar with CDs. So with CDs at the banks not paying, you can do a fixed rate annuity. But, you know, so there's all kinds of things that Kale and I can do for you at your American retirement. We'd love to be able to talk to you. You know, I always ask two questions when I talk to my clients. Number one question How much guaranteed income do you currently have? Number two question Have you eliminated the number one retirement risk from your retirement plan?
Kale Simpson:
Please visit your American retirement. We're going to continue to go through various examples from a retirement standpoint on what we can do and what we do on a daily basis to help people in retirement reach their specific and customized financial goals and objectives. Guys, so we are honored to have you guys reach out to us and we will do our absolute best to get whatever information that is available in your hands in a timely fashion. And if we're if we're fortunate enough to earn your business, then you are a client for life. But until the next show, guys, please visit your American retirement. Give us a call. 8669907664. That is 8669907664. Thank you so much for listening today, guys. We will talk to you on the next episode.
Randy Sams:
Thank you.
Producer:
Thanks for listening to your American retirement. You deserve to work with licensed financial insurance experts who can offer sound strategies for protecting and growing your hard earned money to schedule your free no obligation consultation. Visit your American retirement today that's your American retirement dot com not affiliated with the United States government. Randy Sams and Kale Simpson do 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 of. Property of their respective owners. A married 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 of the results obtained from the use of this information.
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