How to choose the right account for your situation and get the strongest financial guarantees.
All of these accounts will have time frames associated with them such as 4, 7, or 10 years. Generally the longer the time frame the more financial incentives the companies will give such as higher caps and bigger bonuses. Although you can access funds after 12 months in most accounts, since you are tying up money for a specific time you want to make sure you have other money that is liquid and available for emergencies. Once that is done you can really take advantage of what these companies offer:
Basically the companies say if you put your money with us for a specified time we will:
- Guarantee your principal against market losses
- Lock In any indexed interest you gain each year
- Automatically reset your index position to take advantage of market rebounds
- Charge you no fees or set up charges and allow the funds to grow tax deferred
- Give you large bonuses on long term accounts (Currently 15% for the 10 year account as of August 2008. Call for more details: 480-970-5663)
This also means that just like an IRA or 401k, if you cash out before the time frame is up you’ll pay surrender charges which generally start at 10% and decrease the longer you hold the account. These charges are based on your total account value - your initial deposit plus any market gains. Even if you cash out early you still get to keep all your gains up to that point less your surrender charge. However, long term accounts will require you to hold funds for the entire term to access the bonus money.
You can also take out 10% per year penalty free and most accounts will waive surrender charges for hospital confinement, terminal illness, nursing home confinement and even unemplyment.
All funds are guaranteed and insured.
The companies we use have some of the highest financial ratings available. They are required by law to maintain legal reserve requirements. At Equity 4 Profit, we are one of the few independent agencies and we are not captive to any one company. We simply look at all the accounts on the market and see which ones perform best. Financials are available on request. Just give us a call or email us and we can send them out to you.
The important thing to do is have liquid funds available for emergencies and to match the time frame of the account with your individual situation. We are experts in helping you do this. If you haven’t already, take a few minutes and watch this short overview on Equity Index Products.
