• Index annuities are retirement savings products for investors who want to earn stock market rates of return but still have their principal safe. Your friendly annuity salesman will be sure to tell you all of the advantages of index annuities but may forget to discuss the problems. Like with any long-term investment, there is no substitute for personal research and understanding. Listed below are some Internet-based sources of information about index annuities.
  
  

How Annuities Work

• The CPA Site Solution website provides an in-depth guide, "Annuities: How They Work and When You Should Use Them." Annuities are tax-advantaged retirement savings products offered by life insurance companies. There are income tax, estate and retirement planning consequences of using annuities as investment vehicles. If you are considering an index annuity, the first step is to determine if an annuity is the appropriate vehicle.
  
  

Securities and Exchange Commission

• The Securities and Exchange Commission website provides unbiased information on a wide range of investment and savings topics. The SEC Equity Annuities page provides information on whether you can lose money with an index annuity and how the returns are determined. The SEC also provides contact information if you have a complaint about an index annuity.
  
  

Annuity Truth

• The Annuity Truth website provides an informative, comprehensive primer on equity index annuities. The tutorial starts with annuity basics, then gives the upside and downside possibilities of index annuities. Especially helpful is a list of questions to ask the representative trying to sell you the product.
  
  

Annuity Advantage

• The Annuity Advantage website takes a different approach to explain equity indexed annuities. The guide covers different contract features that may be available or desired. It also goes into detail on the different ways to determine how much an index annuity will actually earn based on the returns of the tracked indexes. This guide would be helpful to the potential investor who understands the nuts and bolts of how the markets and financial products work. The search term "equity indexed annuities explained" will make it easy to find the article.