Accumulation Phase

Accumulation phase has two meanings for investors and those saving for retirement. It refers to the period when an individual is working and planning and ultimately building up the value of their investment through savings. The accumulation phase is then followed by the distribution phase, in which retirees begin accessing and using their funds.

The accumulation phase is also a specific period when an annuity investor is in the early stages of building up the cash value of the annuity. This building phase is followed by the annuitization phase where payments are paid out to the annuitant.

The accumulation phase essentially begins when a person starts saving money for retirement and ends when they begin taking distributions. For many people, this starts when they begin their working life and ends when they retire from the work world. It is possible to start saving for retirement even before beginning the work phase of one's life, such as when someone is a student, but it is not common. Typically, joining the workforce coincides with the start of the accumulation phase.

Experts state that the sooner an individual begins the accumulation phase, the better, with the long-term financial difference between beginning to save in one's 20s vs. in the 30s substantial. Postponing consumption by saving during an accumulation period will most often increase the amount of consumption one will be able to have later. The earlier the accumulation period is in your life, the more advantages you will have, such as compounding interest and protection from business cycles.

In terms of annuities, when a person invests money in an annuity to provide income for retirement, they are at the accumulation period of the annuity's life span. The more invested during the accumulation phase, the more will be received during the annuitization phase.

There are many income streams that an individual can build up during the accumulation phase, starting from when they first enter the workforce, or in some cases, sooner. Here are a few of the more popular options.

• Social Security: a contribution automatically deducted from every paycheck you receive.
• 401(k)s: an optional tax-deferred investment that can be made paycheck-to-paycheck, monthly or yearly, provided your employer offers such an option. The amount you can set aside has yearly limits and also depends on your income, age, and marital status.
• IRAs: is an Individual Retirement Account that can be either pretax or after-tax, depending on which option you choose. The amount you can invest varies year-to-year, as set out by the tax board, and depends on your income, age, and marital status.
• Investment Portfolio: is an investor's holdings, which can include assets such as stocks, government, and corporate bonds, Treasury bills, real estate investment trusts (REITs), exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds and certificates of deposits. Options, derivatives and physical commodities like real estate, land and timber can also be included in the list.
• Deferred payment annuities: these annuities offer tax-deferred growth at a fixed or variable rate of return. They allow individuals to make monthly or lump-sum payments to an insurance company in exchange for guaranteed income down the line, typically 10 years or more.