A lot can change in a few years – the market, your clients’ goals and their financial needs. Our Ash Annuity Audit provides a third-party annuity contract review and analysis to help you build trust and deepen relationships. See how it works and the opportunities it can uncover.

Women typically live longer than men, but they also tend to have lower Social Security benefits. That's why it's important to understand the impact claiming early can have on a surviving spouse. Here's how one couple created a strategy that allowed them to earn over $23,000 in additional Social Security benefits over their lifetimes.

Many are skeptical about the projected performance of life insurance policies. With recent illustrations we find ourselves being limited to showing low projected returns despite actual performance of modern IULs. But these real-world examples show the possible benefits.

Wealth transfer strategies help ensure your client’s estate will be distributed the way they choose. Yet some of their beneficiaries may be uninterested in the asset, or ill-suited to own it. The solution may be to create an estate equalization plan using life insurance.

As goals change, make sure your client’s financial plan is keeping up. The first step is finding out how well their current plan is meeting their needs. Share this checklist with your client to find out what’s changed since they purchased an annuity.

Discover 30 ways to create a strategic approach to growth by partnering with the Ash Retirement Solutions team. Through these complimentary, value-add services, we'll develop a plan focused on the specific critical success factors that matter to you.

Every product recommendation begins with a conversation. In this cheat sheet, we take five key areas of concern and help you review life events that clients may be working through. The provided discussion points for each can lead to implementing a strategy with an annuity.

Most states have guaranty funds to help pay the claims of financially impaired insurance companies. State laws specify the lines of insurance covered by these funds and the dollar limits payable. This cheat sheet summarizes the max liability limits broken down by state.

Currently, an estate is not subject to the federal estate tax until it exceeds $13.61 million (double for married taxpayers). In 2026, the current exemption will sunset, effectively cutting the amount in half. This piece looks at four options to protect your client's legacy before that happens.

In the past, advisors recommended moving assets outside the taxable estate through an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT) when faced with estate tax uncertainty even though this can result in a loss of control to those assets while alive. But, where ILITs fall short, Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATs) shine.

With a spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT), one spouse makes a gift to an irrevocable trust using the gift tax exemption. The SLAT names the other spouse as a current beneficiary, which allows the trustee to distribute funds to the beneficiary spouse during their life.

Consider this your 101 on the role and basic components of a buy-sell agreement. This overview discusses forms of arrangements including a cross purchase plan, entity purchase plan and wait and see plan. You'll also learn about valuation, restrictions, transfers and more.