There are a few things you need to know to make sure you are investing your money safely. The first thing is that the stock market is not a very safe place to put all your eggs in one basket. You really need to diversify your portfolio to make sure you keep up with inflation.

Have you heard of institutions or advisers who invest your money and are in control of your finances like Bernie Madoff or The Stanford Financial Group? Many people have just opened accounts and let these types of financial organizations invest all their money. The problem is, regardless of whether these guys made or lost money, they were still being paid high commissions for their money. They were also in full control of their money, so these institutions or individuals ran illegal Ponzi schemes using their money, and as long as they continued to get new money from investors, it appeared that they were investing their money in the right way. They guaranteed rates of return of 10% and more.

The problem I have with not being in control of your own finances is that you never know what is going on with your money. Investors became creditors of these institutions and many never got back the money they invested.

As an investment advisor, I always make sure my clients can log in and manage their own money and check the performance of their investments.

The stock market is very unpredictable and experiencing big dips as of this writing, and my goal is to be zero loss when investing your money and to be as tax efficient as possible. I have invested millions of dollars and make sure that losses are not part of my philosophy. You still need to invest in a 401k plan if it is offered at your job, but diversify your investments in your 401k plan and make sure you allocate something in the money market sector to limit exposure.

I use annuities and insurance as a way to invest large sums of money and still get great returns ranging from 7% onwards with no risk of losing capital even in a declining market. If you invest strictly in a fixed annuity, you will not keep up with inflation. If you invest in a variable annuity, you will be subject to stock market risk that could lead to large losses. I am an expert in indexed annuities and have sold millions of dollars and they continue to grow due to the security of capital and having the ability to keep pace with inflation and income tax deferral is also important.

When you invest large amounts in indexed annuities, you also have low management fees, unlike variable annuities, which, like the stock market, require a person to manage the funds, adding to the fees. Indexed products are compared to a benchmark index, such as the S&P 500 or another index, and therefore lower fees to trade. Buying an indexed annuity comes with strict adherence to make sure this type of investment is right for you. First, I need to make sure that since your money is locked in for a certain period, this investment is suitable for the investor. The company will also make sure that this investment is suitable for the buyer and then the investor has a free consultation period to make sure the investment fits. Most of the time, an annuity is not suitable for someone in their 70s to 80s, but compliance will determine this depending on the situation. If a client is over 80 years old, we look at indexed life insurance policies to see if we can solve a problem for them. I do a good job of due diligence to make sure my clients fit the product that solves their money problems.