Who fixed indexed annuities are NOT for

1. You may need this money within the next several years

Most FIA contracts charge surrender fees on withdrawals beyond an allowed amount — commonly around 10% per year — for the first 7 to 10 years. If there's a real chance you'll need more than that for a roof, a health event, or helping family, committing that money to an FIA turns a normal life event into an expensive one. Money you might need stays somewhere you can reach it.

2. You want maximum long-term growth and can stomach the ride

The floor of zero is paid for with caps and participation limits — that trade is the whole product. If you're comfortable riding out downturns and your timeline is long, staying invested in the market has historically offered more growth than any capped contract, in exchange for real down years. An FIA is not a way to beat the market. It's a way to opt out of part of it. Those are different goals, and only you know which one you hold.

3. You'd be putting most or all of your savings into it

Even when an FIA fits, it fits as a portion — the part of your savings whose job is stability, not the whole pot. Concentrating everything in one contract, one company, one product category is rarely wise, and an agent who suggests moving everything you have into one should worry you. That applies to me too. Part of what a real review does is talk about which slice of your savings, if any, this kind of contract suits.

4. Retirement is still decades away

The floor matters most when a market drop would change near-term plans. At 35 or 45, time is usually the better protection — downturns have room to recover before you need the money. These contracts are built around the years close to and inside retirement. That's not a rule about age; it's a rule about when the money has to show up for work.

5. You don't fully understand what you'd be signing

Caps, participation rates, spreads, riders, renewal terms, surrender schedules — these contracts have real moving parts. If an explanation left you more confused than before, or you felt rushed past the details, do not sign. Not with me, not with anyone. The three questions that separate the pros from the pitches are a decent test of whoever is across the table.

Why an agent would publish this list

Because the alternative is worse for both of us. If an FIA is wrong for you and you buy one anyway, you end up unhappy, and you should. I would rather tell you it's not a fit in fifteen minutes than have you find out in year three. Some people who take the checkup get exactly that answer — and it's a useful answer to have.

The full plain-English explainer — mechanics, tradeoffs, and who it's wrong for — is here: how fixed indexed annuities actually work.