Glossary

Break-even analysis in the annuity context is the calculation of the age at which the cumulative payments from an immediate annuity would equal the cumulative withdrawals from a self-managed portfolio funded with the same premium, used to assess the survival horizon required for annuitization to pay off in cash-flow terms. Why it matters Break-even analysis is the longest-standing analytical framing for the annuity purchase decision, and it remains common in advisor presentations,

A broker, in the annuity context, is a licensed intermediary who represents the prospective buyer rather than a specific insurance carrier and is generally authorized to sell annuity contracts from multiple carriers, with compensation typically received as a commission paid by the carrier whose product is sold. Why it matters The broker is one of the principal distribution channels through which annuity contracts reach buyers in the US market. The structural distinction between a

A bucket strategy is a decumulation approach in which retirement assets are segregated into multiple sub-portfolios — typically short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term — each with an asset allocation matched to its time horizon, with current withdrawals drawn primarily from the short-term bucket while longer-term buckets continue to grow. Why it matters The bucket strategy is a widely used framing in advisor practice and individual decumulation planning because it makes the s