As seniors learn to deal with retirement and Baby Boomers approach that milestone, annuities have been playing an increasingly important role in the financial lives in this country. In fact, 44 percent of annuity owners bought their first annuity before age 50, reports the Annuity Fact Book, 2003, National Association for Variable Annuities.

The 2003 Retirement Confidence Survey found that only 13 percent of workers expect Social Security to be their primary source of income in retirement. Most people are planning to fund retirement through a combination of employer-sponsored plans and personal savings and investments.

Retirement planning should begin as soon as people start their first jobs. Realistically, though, most are too busy to worry about something so far away. According to a report published by the Investment Company Institute, "Baby Boomers have done less financial planning for their future than did the previous generation. Studies show that despite a large number of two-income households and a higher per-capita income, they have a lower savings rate than their parents.