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Help protect your retirement savings from market gains and losses

By: F&G

Saving money for retirement has been your goal for years. But once you finally retire and begin using your savings, it can be hard to know how much is safe to spend. After all, you want to have enough to live comfortably through all your years of retirement.

Stock market returns and your own longevity can impact how long your savings last. You can’t control what happens in the market or how long you live, but you can reduce the risk of outliving your savings with the help of guaranteed income products.

Why timing matters as much as market performance

Making the most of your savings in retirement is not just about how the market performs. It’s also about when market ups and downs happen, relative to when you need the money.

If your investments lose value in the early years of retirement – right when you’re starting to withdraw money to live on – those losses can have an outsized impact. You’re pulling money out of a shrinking account, which leaves less left over to benefit from any market recovery later. The same average return over 20 or 30 years can lead to very different outcomes depending on whether the bad years hit at the beginning of retirement, or later, once your savings have had time to grow.

Mary and Jack: Same savings, same average return, very different outcomes

Let’s look at two retirees, Mary and Jack. They start with the same amount of savings, take the same withdrawals, but experience very different market conditions at different times in their retirement. Each retiree:

  • Retires at 65 with $500,000 in savings
  • Withdraws $30,000 from their savings each year for 30 years
  • Receives the same hypothetical average annual return of 7% for 30 years

There’s one difference: Mary experiences market gains early in her retirement, while Jack experiences market losses early in his.

In Mary’s first two years of retirement, the stock market is up, so her savings get a head start on growth. These gains help set her up for a higher rate of return over her remaining 28 years of retirement, even if the market experiences losses later on. In Mary’s example, the market declines for the last two years of her retirement, but she’s well protected with money to spare – a total of $877,000 still in her account after 30 years - due to her luck in having positive market returns early on.

Jack has less luck with market conditions. In his first two years of retirement, the stock market is down, so his savings lose some value. Although the market recovers, and eventually even grows during Jack’s last two years of retirement, the early losses mean that his savings do not grow the way Mary’s do. Jack runs out of money in year 29 of his planned 30 years of retirement.

The market conditions Mary and Jack experienced early in their retirement made a big impact on how long their savings lasted, even when they spent the same amount of money.

How guaranteed income products can help protect against risk

To reduce the risk of early stock market losses negatively impacting their savings, some retirees turn to guaranteed income products like fixed indexed annuities (FIA). Annuities are long-term retirement planning tools that can provide steady, predictable income for life – regardless of how the stock market performs. Depending on the policy, an FIA may offer:

  • Protection from market declines, especially in early retirement
  • Potential to earn interest credits based on an external market index
  • Guaranteed income you can’t outlive

Knowing you have guaranteed income may help you feel more comfortable spending money on things that matter to you. It can reduce your concerns about running out of money because of poor market returns at any stage in your retirement.

Talk with your financial professional about ways to balance growth potential, income needs and protection in retirement, and if an annuity is the right fit for your financial goals.

Don’t have a financial professional? We can help you find one in your area.

“F&G” is the marketing name for Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company issuing insurance in the United States outside of New York. Life insurance and annuities issued by Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company, Des Moines, IA.

The Mary and Jack examples show the growth of $500,000 based on a series of hypothetical returns over a 30 year period. Mary incurs positive returns in year 1 & 2 years and negative returns in years 29 & 30. Jacks incurs returns in the exact reverse order of Mary with negative returns in years 1 & 2 and positive returns in years 29 & 30. The average return of each scenario is 7%. Returns are posted at the end of each year after a withdrawal of $30,000 is taken. These returns are hypothetical and not expected to be returns of any specific product or index. The illustration is intended to just show how withdrawals impact the growth of a portfolio over time based on various sequences of return.

Guarantees are based on the claims paying ability of the issuing insurer, Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company, Des Moines, IA.

A fixed indexed annuity is intended for retirement or other long-term needs. It is intended for a person who has sufficient cash or other liquid assets for living expenses and other unexpected emergencies, such as medical expenses. A fixed indexed annuity is not a registered security.

This product is a deferred, fixed indexed annuity that provides a minimum guaranteed surrender value. You should understand how the minimum guaranteed surrender value is determined before purchasing an annuity contract. Even though contract values may be affected by external indexes, the annuity is not an investment in the stock market and does not participate in any stock, bond or equity investments.

F&G annuities are insurance products not guaranteed by any bank nor are they insured by FDIC, NCUA/NCUSIF, the Federal Government or any agency. They may lose value. There is no bank or credit union guarantee, and they are not a deposit. They may be offered only by a licensed insurance agent. Interest rates subject to change at insurer’s discretion and are effective annual rates.

The provisions, riders and optional additional features of the product have limitations and restrictions, may have additional charges and may not be available in all states. The examples provided are hypothetical, non-guaranteed and are not an indication of the policy’s and/or interest crediting option’s past or future performance. Surrender charges and a market value adjustment (MVA) may apply to withdrawals. An MVA may increase or decrease the surrender value. Withdrawals may be taxable and may be subject to penalties prior to age 59 ½. Withdrawals will reduce the available death benefit.

No bank guarantee. • Not FDIC/NCUA/NCUSIF insured. • May lose value if surrendered early.

ADV46333 (09-2026)
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