Has anyone had experience with the Fidelity Benefits center when retiring or considering retiring? If so, what areas do they give you assistance and advice on? Do they assist with Medicare options?
8 replies (most recent on top)
"What type of fiduciary provides this service: Financial Planner?"
Yes, but only with a CFP certification or a written statement of fiduciary duty, like Garrett Planning network or Edelmann Financial. Expect to pay an hourly fee for advice, as you would a doctor or accountant.
"Independent Insurance agent?"
Nooooooooooooooooo! Danger Will Robinson! They sell insurance and are great for covering your insurance needs, but many also sell extremely high cost annuities. Most annuity fees and costs are very well buried in the plan documents. Stick to insurance with these folks.
"Didn't know about lump sum, then went from $800/month to $6000/month. Talent was wasted at AT&T. "
Something is weird here... My BS detector is screaming.
At a 4.5% withdrawal rate, $1.6M is required to throw off $6k/mo ($72k/yr). An $800/mo. pension annuity from AT&T would have nowhere near a lump sum that large.
There is either a lot of missing info here, like other monies rolled into the IRA, or the IRA is with Bernie Madoff.
I do checkups with a fee-only fiduciary (not Fidelity) and have done really well in my 3 decades of self-directed retirement saving. I've found Fidelity to be pretty reliable in what they've told co-workers.
My own current estimate would provide just short of $1M as an AT&T lump, and about $4k/mo as an annuity without survivorship, Just sayin'...
Didn't know about lump sum, then went from $800/month to $6000/month. Talent was wasted at AT&T.
What are you investing in to get $6000/mth? Congrats!
I'll give you some free advice...if you're over 65, retire. You're welcome.
TO Post ID: @frb+1a6w4N3f "Find your own fiduciary and pay them by the hour to provide you a plan." What type of fiduciary provides this service: Financial Planner? Independent Insurance agent?
Fidelity’s primary goal is to look out for Fidelity. Yes they offer advice, but they coincidentally skew your “choices” to their advantage. For example: when I retired Fidelity strongly pushed me toward taking the $800/month annuity payment option. In fact, they did not even present the option of taking the lump sum. So it took four months of phone calls, emails, and snail mail before they finally released the lump sum to me. I promptly rolled it into an IRA and am averaging $6000/month in market growth. Plus, when I die the IRA goes to my heirs; whereas the annuity option stops.
Fidelity is a financial services company. They can provide investment advice, and assist with that. They also have people who can advise on all your pension options. They are not medicare experts. qualified retiree's 65 and over are referred to AON, for medicare advise. They are an insurance broker that sells different supplement plans, and can provide dental and vision. They administer the funds AT&T provides retiree's for supplements. Also you should go thru the tools provided on the social security web site, however you must buy at least one plan, whether it's plan D, or medical supplement in order to receive the AT&T money.
Fidelity is too in bed with T. They will NOT tell you all the info you need. Find your own fiduciary and pay them by the hour to provide you a plan.