RMDs and Annuities: How to Avoid Hidden Tax Traps in Retirement

Key Takeaways

• RMD rules changed significantly in 2023-2024 under the SECURE 2.0 Act, and annuities can either solve or worsen your RMD tax problems depending on how they’re structured. The right annuity design can reduce lifetime taxes; the wrong one can lock you into inflexible contracts during your most important tax-planning years.

• Required minimum distributions now generally start at age 73 for those born between 1951 and 1959, and at age 75 for individuals born in 1960 or later. Missing an RMD can trigger a 25% IRS penalty (reduced to 10% if corrected promptly).

• Many annuities lock you into surrender periods of 7-10 years that can block Roth conversions and other critical tax planning during your 60s and early 70s—precisely when these strategies matter most.

• Products like the North American Horizon Accelerator allow Roth conversions even during the surrender period, giving you far more flexibility for coordinated RMD and tax planning than traditional annuity contracts.

• Ready to see if you’re exposed to unnecessary RMD risk?Take the free Retirement Efficiency Scorecard from Revolutionary Wealthto identify the “danger zones” in your current retirement plan before it’s too late to fix them.

How RMDs and Annuities Fit Into Your Retirement Plan

If you’re in your late 50s, 60s, or already retired, understanding how required minimum distributions and annuities interact isn’t optional—it’s essential. These two elements directly affect your taxes, your retirement income, and what you’ll eventually leave to your heirs.

Here’s the fundamental reality: RMDs apply to tax deferred retirement accounts like traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and similar employer sponsored plans. If you own an annuity inside one of these qualified retirement accounts, that annuity is absolutely subject to RMD rules once you reach your RMD age.

The good news is that using annuities strategically for lifetime income can help automatically satisfy some or all of your RMD obligations. When structured properly, the annuity payments you receive count toward your annual RMD, simplifying compliance while providing predictable income you can rely on.

The challenge is that planning must happen before you hit 73. The decisions you make in your late 50s and early 60s can dramatically reduce future RMD taxes through a combination of Roth conversions, qualified longevity annuity contracts, and thoughtful annuity design. Wait too long, and your options narrow considerably.

Not sure where you stand?Revolutionary Wealth offers a free Retirement Efficiency Scorecard that identifies RMD “danger zones” in your current financial plan. This isn’t a sales pitch—it’s a diagnostic tool that shows exactly where you may be leaving money on the table or exposing yourself to unnecessary tax liability.

What Are RMDs (Required Minimum Distributions)?

Required minimum distributions are exactly what they sound like: IRS-mandated withdrawals from your tax deferred accounts. The government allowed your money to grow tax deferred for decades—now they want their cut.

Current RMD Ages

Under the SECURE 2.0 Act, the RMD age increased from the previous thresholds:

How RMDs Are Calculated

The RMD calculation itself is straightforward:

Prior year December 31 account balance ÷ Life expectancy factor = Your RMD

The life expectancy factor comes from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table (or the Joint Life Table if your sole beneficiary is a spouse more than 10 years younger). For example, a 73-year-old with a $1 million traditional IRA would use a divisor of approximately 25.4, resulting in an annual RMD of roughly $39,353.

Accounts Subject to RMDs

RMD requirements apply to:

• Traditional IRAs

• SEP IRAs

• SIMPLE IRAs

• 401(k) plans

• 403(b) plans

• 457(b) plans

• Some pension arrangements

Accounts NOT subject to RMDs during the owner’s lifetime include Roth IRAs. Under SECURE 2.0, Roth 401(k)s also no longer require RMDs, though rolling them to a Roth IRA often provides maximum flexibility.

The Penalty for Missing RMDs

Miss your required minimum distribution, and the IRS imposes an excise tax of up to 25% on the amount you failed to withdraw. If you correct the error within the allowed window and properly report it, this penalty may be reduced to 10%—but that’s still a costly mistake.

The Tax Impact Most People Overlook

RMDs are taxed as ordinary income. This matters because large RMDs can:

• Push you into higher federal and state tax brackets

• Increase Medicare premiums through IRMAA surcharges

• Trigger taxation on a higher percentage of your Social Security benefits

A retiree who thought they were in the 22% bracket might suddenly find themselves paying 32% on a portion of their income simply because their RMD was larger than expected.

What Is an Annuity and How Does It Work With RMDs?

An annuity is a contract with an insurance company that can turn a lump sum into a stream of guaranteed income. The guarantees are backed by the issuing insurance company’s claims paying ability, which is why selecting a financially strong insurer matters.

Annuity Types Relevant to RMD Planning

Qualified vs. Nonqualified Ownership

Annuities can be owned in two different tax wrappers:

• Qualified annuities: Funded with pre-tax dollars inside an IRA or retirement plan. RMD rules absolutely apply.

• Non qualified annuities: Funded with after tax dollars outside retirement accounts. No RMD requirements, though earnings are taxed as ordinary income when withdrawn.

When an income annuity is purchased with qualified money inside an IRA, its annual annuity income typically counts toward satisfying that account’s RMD once you reach RMD age. This can simplify compliance significantly.

However, annuity contracts come with features that can either help or hurt your tax efficiency. Surrender periods, withdrawal penalties, and limited Roth conversion flexibility are critical issues to evaluate before buying an annuity in your 50s or 60s.

Qualified vs. Nonqualified Annuities for RMD Planning

The IRS cares less about what you call your annuity and more about whether the dollars inside are pre-tax or after-tax.

Qualified Annuities and RMD Requirements

A qualified annuity is funded with pre-tax dollars from IRA accounts or defined contribution plans. When you reach your RMD age, these contracts are subject to RMD rules just like any other IRA funds.

One helpful feature: RMDs from IRAs can usually be aggregated. If you own multiple accounts including several IRA annuities, you can calculate the total RMD across all IRAs and then take the entire distribution from just one account. This provides flexibility in deciding which assets to liquidate.

Employer plans like 401(k)s work differently—they generally must satisfy rmd requirements separately for each plan.

Nonqualified Annuities: No RMDs

A nonqualified annuity is purchased with money you’ve already paid taxes on. These contracts grow tax deferred but are not subject to mandatory withdrawals.

This creates a planning opportunity: because non qualified annuities have no RMD, they can serve as a place to store dollars you want to continue growing without being forced out. This can help offset the tax drag of required withdrawals coming from traditional retirement accounts.

The Coordination Advantage

Revolutionary Wealth analyzes both qualified and nonqualified annuities together to build a coordinated RMD and income strategy. Viewing each contract in isolation misses the bigger picture of how your entire retirement plan interacts with tax law.

The SECURE 2.0 Act: New Flexibility for RMDs and Annuities

The SECURE 2.0 Act, enacted in late 2022 with provisions taking effect in 2023 and later years, reshaped how and when retirees must take RMDs and how some annuity distributions can satisfy them.

Key Changes Affecting Annuity and RMD Planning

Income annuities can now satisfy RMDs more flexibly.The law allows income from certain qualified income annuities to count toward satisfying RMDs not just for that specific annuity, but also for the purchasing IRA or plan when structured properly.

Fair market value reporting.Insurers now report a fair market value for qualifying annuities each year, which is used in RMD calculations for the associated retirement account.

Excess annuity income application.If your annuity payments exceed your calculated minimum amount requirement, that excess can potentially be applied to help satisfy RMDs for other qualified accounts (subject to IRS aggregation rules for IRAs vs. employer plans).

QLAC expansion.SECURE 2.0 expanded the limits on qualified longevity annuity contracts and removed the previous 25% account cap, making it easier to use QLACs to reduce earlier RMDs.

These new rules create opportunities—but also complexity. The interaction between annuity payouts, RMD calculations, and tax brackets requires careful coordination, which is exactly what Revolutionary Wealth’s Retirement Efficiency Scorecard process is designed to address.

The Hidden Pitfalls: Surrender Periods, Roth Conversions, and RMD Traps

Here’s where many pre-retirees make costly mistakes: they buy annuities in their 50s or early 60s without realizing the contract’s surrender schedule can block critical tax strategies later.

Understanding Surrender Periods

Surrender periods are timeframes—often 7-10 years—during which withdrawals above a “free” amount trigger surrender charges. These charges can be substantial, particularly in the early years of the contract.

Most annuities allow penalty-free withdrawals of about 10% of contract value annually. Anything beyond that incurs charges that can reach 8-10% in year one, declining gradually over the surrender period.

Why This Blocks Roth Conversions

Roth conversions involve moving IRA money from your traditional IRA to Roth IRAs. You pay taxes on the conversion amount now, but the funds then grow tax-free and aren’t subject to RMDs during your lifetime.

The prime years for Roth conversions are typically ages 60-72—before required minimum distributions rmds begin but after you’ve potentially left high-earning employment. This window allows you to fill up lower tax brackets with conversion income.

But if most of your traditional IRA is locked in an annuity with a 9-year surrender period, you can’t access those funds for meaningful Roth conversions without paying steep penalties.

A Concrete Example

Consider a 62-year-old who moves $600,000 of their IRA into a fixed indexed annuity with an 8-year surrender period. They planned to do $60,000 annual Roth conversions to reduce their future RMD exposure.

The problem:Their annuity only allows 10% penalty-free withdrawals annually. That’s $60,000—barely enough for one year’s conversion, and it depletes their “free” withdrawal allowance, leaving nothing for emergencies.

By the time the surrender period ends, they’re 70. They have only 2-3 years left before RMDs begin. The conversion opportunity window has largely closed.

The result:Their future taxable income from RMDs is significantly higher than it needed to be. Over a 20-year retirement, this could mean $50,000-$100,000+ in additional taxes, plus higher Medicare premiums and more Social Security taxation.

The Real-World Impact

Large future RMDs can:

• Push you from the 22% bracket into the 24% or 32% bracket

• Trigger IRMAA surcharges adding hundreds or thousands to annual Medicare premiums

• Increase the percentage of Social Security benefits subject to taxation from 50% to 85%

Revolutionary Wealth evaluates surrender schedules, liquidity provisions, and the timing of RMDs and Roth conversions before recommending any annuity. The goal is minimizing lifetime taxes—not just maximizing initial guarantees that look good on paper.

Contrast in Design: North American Horizon Accelerator vs. Traditional Annuities

Not all annuities restrict Roth conversions the same way. Contract design matters immensely for RMD strategy and long-term tax efficiency.

The Traditional Annuity Problem

Many traditional IRA annuities either:

• Completely restrict Roth conversions during the surrender period

• Treat conversions as withdrawals subject to surrender charges

• Allow only the standard 10% free withdrawal, which limits conversion amounts

This effectively punishes people for doing smart tax planning. You bought the annuity expecting growth and guarantees—but you didn’t realize you were trading away flexibility that could save you far more in taxes.

How the North American Horizon Accelerator Differs

The North American Horizon Accelerator is a structured registered index-linked annuity (RILA) from North American Company for Life and Health Insurance that includes enhanced liquidity features specifically designed to permit Roth conversions during the surrender charge period.

Key features include:

• Annual withdrawals up to 100% of indexed interest credits without penalty after year one

• Optional riders for partial premium access

• Ability to ladder conversions—converting 10-20% annually from IRA residue—while capturing market-linked growth

• Buffers absorbing 10-30% of market losses with uncapped upside potential in strong years

Why This Matters for Your RMD Strategy

Being able to do partial Roth conversions each year in your 60s can gradually reduce your future IRA balance. Lower IRA balance at RMD age means:

• Lower annual RMD calculations

• Lower taxable income in your 70s and 80s

• Reduced Medicare premium surcharges

• More tax-free growth in your Roth accounts for you or your heirs

A Hypothetical Example

A 63-year-old allocates $500,000 into the Horizon Accelerator inside their IRA. Over the next 7 years, they systematically convert $50,000 annually to their Roth IRA using the product’s conversion-friendly features.

By age 70, they’ve moved $350,000 to tax-free status while the remaining balance has grown with market-linked returns. Their projected lifetime tax savings from lower RMDs: approximately 30% compared to leaving everything in a rigid annuity structure.

Revolutionary Wealth uses tools like theRetirement Efficiency Scorecardand insights from itsretirement and wealth planning resource centerto compare the long-term tax impact of inflexible annuities versus conversion-friendly designs, showing clients side-by-side projections before any purchase decisions are made.

Using QLACs to Reduce Future RMDs

A qualified longevity annuity contract is a special type of deferred income annuity purchased inside a traditional IRA or similar retirement plan where annuity income can begin as late as age 85.

How QLACs Reduce Your RMDs

Under current SECURE 2.0 rules, you can allocate up to $200,000 (indexed for inflation) into a QLAC. That amount is then removed from the IRA balance used to calculate your RMDs until QLAC income actually starts.

Example:A 72-year-old with a $2 million IRA would normally face an RMD of approximately $81,632 at age 73. But if they allocate $200,000 to a QLAC, their RMD-calculation balance drops to $1.8 million, reducing the annual rmd to approximately $65,420.

That’s $16,212 less in forced taxable income every year—money that stays invested and compounds rather than being pulled out and taxed.

When QLAC Income Begins

QLAC payments are fully taxable when they start (since funded with pre-tax money from qualified accounts). However, this deferred income typically begins when you may need additional funds most—for advanced-age expenses, long-term care costs, or inflation protection in your 80s and 90s.

The income stream provides longevity insurance against outliving your savings, with 2024 data showing QLAC payout rates of 5-7% for income starting at age 85.

Integration With Other Strategies

QLAC decisions must be coordinated with:

• Roth conversion strategies

• Social Security claiming timing

• Overall withdrawal sequencing

• Medicare premium management

Revolutionary Wealth models different QLAC allocation scenarios as part of its RMD planning process, showing how various contribution levels affect lifetime taxes and income stability, all guided byan experienced, client-focused retirement planning team.

QLACs Aren’t for Everyone

Consider these suitability factors before purchasing:

• Health status and longevity expectations: If family history or health conditions suggest shorter life expectancy, locking funds until age 85 may not make sense

• Liquidity needs: QLAC funds are inaccessible until the income start date

• Legacy goals: QLACs typically offer limited death benefits; if leaving assets to heirs is a priority, other strategies may be preferable

• Overall portfolio composition: QLACs work best as part of a diversified income plan, not as a standalone solution

Coordinating RMDs, Annuities, Roth Conversions, and Other Income Sources

The real value in retirement planning comes from integrating all the moving parts: IRA balances, annuities, Roth accounts, taxable accounts, Social Security, pensions, and QLACs—a holistic approach that aligns withRevolutionary Wealth’s personalized retirement and wealth management solutions.

A Multi-Year Planning Framework

A thoughtful plan spanning ages 60-80 can:

• Shift money from tax deferred to Roth before RMD age

• Reduce future mandatory withdrawals

• Stabilize tax brackets throughout retirement

• Maximize after-tax income and legacy wealth

How the Pieces Fit Together

Annuity income for baseline expenses.Income annuities funded with IRA dollars can provide predictable income covering essential living costs. This annual income satisfies a portion of your RMD obligations automatically.

Strategic Roth conversions.The remaining IRA balance can be converted strategically to Roth over multiple years, managing your tax liability in each conversion year while reducing future RMD exposure.

Nonqualified assets and taxable accounts.These can be sequenced in a tax-smart withdrawal order to help keep overall taxes consistent rather than spiking in certain years.

Emergency fund preservation.Maintaining adequate liquid reserves outside annuity contracts ensures you’re never forced into early withdrawal penalty situations or surrender charges.

Example: A Coordinated Approach

Consider a 68-year-old couple with:

• $1 million traditional IRA

• $300,000 in a fixed indexed annuity inside the IRA

• $200,000 in taxable brokerage accounts

• $150,000 in Roth IRAs

Without coordination, their projected age-73 RMD would be approximately $51,000, pushing them into the 24% bracket.

With a coordinated strategy:

1. Convert $50,000/year from non-annuity IRA funds to Roth (ages 68-72)

2. Use annuity payments to satisfy remaining RMD requirements

3. Draw from taxable accounts for additional spending needs

Result: Age-73 RMD drops to approximately $31,000, they remain in the 22% bracket, and they’ve moved $250,000 to tax-free growth.

Ready to see what coordination could do for your specific situation?Request Revolutionary Wealth’s Retirement Efficiency Scorecard for a personalized, year-by-year projection of RMDs, taxes, and income under different strategies.

Why Work With Revolutionary Wealth on RMD and Annuity Planning

Revolutionary Wealth specializes in designing retirement income plans that integrate annuity rmd rules, Roth conversions, and tax planning rather than treating each element in isolation.

Beyond “Selling Annuities”

The firm doesn’t simply sell annuity contracts. Every recommendation is stress-tested against:

• Lifetime tax projections

• RMD schedules

• Social Security timing

• Medicare cost implications

• Legacy and beneficiary goals

The question isn’t “which annuity pays the highest commission?” It’s “does this contract actually help the client achieve their goals?”

What Gets Evaluated

Revolutionary Wealth actively analyzes:

Working Alongside Tax Professionals

RMD strategies can get complex, especially when combining QLACs, partial Roth conversions, and annuity distributions; educationalretirement and financial planning videoscan be a useful starting point before diving into personalized modeling. Revolutionary Wealth works alongside your tax advisor or can recommend one to ensure strategies comply with IRS rules and are reported correctly.

TheRetirement Efficiency Scorecard

TheRetirement Efficiency Scorecardis the core entry process—an organized analysis showing where you may be exposed to:

• Unnecessary RMD risk

• Excessive lifetime taxes

• Inflexible annuity structures

• Missed Roth conversion opportunities

It’s not a generic questionnaire. It’s a personalized diagnostic that reveals exactly what’s working in your current plan and what needs attention.

Ready to take the next step?Schedule a conversation or request your customized Retirement Efficiency Scorecard from Revolutionary Wealth to see precisely where you stand.

Conclusion: Turning RMD Obligations Into a Coordinated Retirement Strategy

RMDs are unavoidable for most pre-tax retirement accounts. But the amount of tax you pay on them—and the flexibility you retain throughout retirement—is very much within your control.

The main dangers to avoid:

• Ignoring RMDs until your early 70s, when most planning options have narrowed

• Buying inflexible annuities with long surrender periodsthat block Roth conversions during your prime tax-planning years

• Missing key Roth conversion windowsbetween retirement and RMD age

• Failing to consider QLACsfor legitimate RMD reduction

Flexible annuity structures like the North American Horizon Accelerator, combined with strategically placed QLACs and coordinated withdrawals, can significantly reduce your lifetime tax drag compared to a haphazard approach.

The bottom line: don’t treat RMD and annuity decisions as isolated product purchases. They’re components of a single, integrated retirement income and tax plan that should work together toward your goals.

Take action now.Take Revolutionary Wealth’s Retirement Efficiency Scorecardto quickly determine whether your current path leaves you exposed to unnecessary RMD risk and taxes. The earlier you identify the problems, the more time you have to fix them.

FAQ: RMDs, Annuities, and Advanced Planning Questions

Can I convert an existing IRA annuity to a Roth IRA without surrender charges?

Technically, many IRA annuities can be converted to a Roth IRA—the IRS allows it. However, the conversion is treated as a taxable distribution in the year of conversion and may trigger surrender charges if it exceeds the contract’s free withdrawal amount.

Some newer annuity designs, like the North American Horizon Accelerator, are specifically structured to be Roth-conversion-friendly during the surrender period. Older contracts are often highly restrictive.

Review your specific annuity contracts and work with a financial professional like Revolutionary Wealth to model how much can be converted each year without incurring unnecessary charges or penalties.

Do I still have to take RMDs if I’m still working past age 73?

For most employer-sponsored plans like a current 401(k), RMDs can often be delayed until April 1 following the year you retire—as long as you don’t own more than 5% of the company. This “still working” exception can provide valuable additional deferral time.

However, this exception generally does not apply to IRA accounts. RMDs from traditional IRAs must begin once you reach your applicable RMD age, regardless of whether you’re still employed.

Coordinate with your employer plan administrator and a planner to decide whether rolling old 401(k)s into an IRA or leaving them in the employer plan is optimal from an RMD standpoint.

What happens to my annuity and RMDs when I die?

RMD rules change significantly for beneficiaries. Inherited annuities and inherited IRAs are subject to different distribution timelines under SECURE and SECURE 2.0, including the 10-year payout rule for many non-spouse beneficiaries.

Beneficiary payout options depend on the annuity contract features (period certain, refund options, beneficiary continuation riders) and whether the account was qualified or nonqualified.

Thoughtful beneficiary designations and proper contract structure can help heirs avoid accidentally missing inherited RMDs or being forced into large, taxable lump sum distributions that could have been spread over time.

How do QLACs interact with Social Security and Medicare costs?

By lowering RMDs in your early and mid-70s, QLACs can reduce taxable income during the years when Social Security benefits are being collected. This can potentially decrease how much of your Social Security is taxable (the threshold determines whether 50% or 85% of benefits are taxed).

Lower taxable income can also help some retirees avoid or reduce Medicare IRMAA surcharges, which are based on modified adjusted gross income from two years prior.

QLAC decisions should be reviewed as part of a broader income timeline that considers both finances and quality-of-life priorities;lifestyle-focused planning resourcescan help you think through how these choices affect day-to-day living. Revolutionary Wealth can model how QLAC deferral interacts with your Social Security claiming strategy and projected Medicare costs.

Is it ever better not to use annuities for RMD planning?

Yes, in some cases. If you have very high liquidity needs, serious health concerns that suggest shorter life expectancy, or a strong desire to keep assets in market-based investments for maximum growth potential, adding an annuity may not be the optimal RMD strategy.

For others, a thoughtful mix of market investments and carefully chosen annuities—including QLACs or income annuities—can reduce risk, smooth income, and improve after-tax outcomes compared to an all-investment portfolio.

View annuities as tools, not goals. Supplement your planning with practicalfinancial calculators and planning tools, and let a holistic analysis like Revolutionary Wealth’s Retirement Efficiency Scorecard guide whether annuities meaningfully improve your specific RMD and retirement income picture—or whether other approaches serve you better.

Disclosures:

This blog contains general information that may not be suitable for everyone. The information contained herein should not be construed as personalized investment advice. There is no guarantee that the views and opinions expressed in this blog will come to pass. Investing in the stock market involves gains and losses and may not be suitable for all investors. Information presented herein is subject to change without notice and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell any security. Revolutionary Wealth LLC does not offer legal or tax advice. Please consult the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Not associated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration, Medicare or any other government agency.

Maximizing your Social Security Benefits assumes foreknowledge of your date of death. If as an example you wait to claim a higher monthly benefit amount but predecease your average life expectancy, it would have been better to claim your benefits at an earlier age with reduced benefits.

Converting an employer plan account or Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA is a taxable event. Increased taxable income from the Roth IRA conversion may have several consequences including but not limited to, a need for additional tax withholding or estimated tax payments, the loss of certain tax deductions and credits, and higher taxes on Social Security benefits and higher Medicare premiums. Be sure to consult with a qualified tax advisor before making any decisions regarding your IRA.

Fixed Annuities are long term insurance contracts and there is a surrender charge imposed generally during the first 5 to 7 years that you own the annuity contract. Indexed annuities are insurance contracts that, depending on the contract, may offer a guaranteed annual interest rate and some participation growth, if any, of a stock market index. Such contracts have substantial variation in terms, costs of guarantees and features and may cap participation or returns in significant ways. Investors are cautioned to carefully review an indexed annuity for its features, costs, risks, and how the variables are calculated. Any guarantees offered are backed by the financial strength of the insurance company. Surrender charges apply if not held to the end of the term. Withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income and, if taken prior to 59 ½, a 10% federal tax penalty.

Please consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing in Variable Annuities. The prospectus, which contains this and other information about the variable annuity contract and the underlying investment options, can be obtained from the insurance company or your financial professional. Be sure to read the prospectus carefully before deciding whether to invest.

The investment return and principal value of the variable annuity investment options are not guaranteed. Variable annuity sub-accounts fluctuate with changes in market conditions. The principal may be worth more or less than the original amount invested when the annuity is surrendered.

QLACs cannot be purchased with Roth or Inherited IRA dollars; value of such IRAs cannot be included in determining 25% premium limit. If Funding Source is Traditional IRA, 25% limit is calculated by combining the total value of all Traditional IRAs as of December 31st of the previous year. If Funding source is Employer sponsored qualified plan (401k, 403b and governmental 457b), 25% limit is calculated on an individual plan basis based on the plan’s account value on the previous day’s market close. If you previously purchased a QLAC, the calculation of your 25% limit is more complicated. Please contact an attorney or tax professional for additional details. Any guarantees of the annuity are backed by the financial strength of the underlying insurance company.

The projections or other information generated by Monte Carlo analysis tools regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, are based on assumptions that you provide which could prove to be inaccurate over time, do not reflect actual investment results, and are not guarantees of future results. Results may vary with each use and over time.