Fidelity decides to lower variable annuity fees

As we all know, 2008 produced the worst financial crisis that the world has ever seen. The whole world is still recovering from that disaster. Many people have become more aware of their personal financial situations and have become very aware of the places where they may be wasting some of their money. Given this trend, Fidelity investments has revamped it's fee based system.

Recently they lowered the fees they charge on their annuities investments from 0.35 percent to 0.25 percent. This change may not seem like it would make much of a difference at all, but for those who have large amounts of money in annuities it does make a massive difference. Fidelity has said that the change will apply both to new customers and to their existing ones.

For those who have over one million dollars invested with Fidelity in annuities they get an even better deal. They will only pay a fee of only 0.1 percent.

Some say that Fidelity has done this in an effort to undercut their rival Vanguard investments. Vanguard currently has a fee of 0.3 percent. This slight undercut by Fidelity may actually prove to provide significant additional business for them over time. Just that small 0.05 percent difference between Fidelity and Vanguard can be a huge difference for someone with a larger annuity financial portfolio in their investments.

There are some measures that would make Vanguard annuities cheaper for investors than Fidelity annuities. For Fidelity it is really a matter of perception. They want people to think that they have lower rates even if some investments end up costing more then Vanguard. It is really up to the investor to be able to figure out which broker is better for them based on their own personal situation.

Although comparing brokers on a fraction of a percentage may not be your idea of saving money, it may be one of the most effective ways. Everyday we try to think of ways to save our money, however saving our investment dollars is probably one of the best for a retirement fund.