Coming soon for our own good: Restrictions on big retirement account payouts

For all the good they do, annuitization remains fairly low among all retirement funding options, really, accounting for only about 15 percent of total retirement funding. Despite efforts to make annuities simpler and less costly, the take-up rate hasn’t changed all that much at a time when getting folks to determine lifetime income streams is more important than ever before. A key development might be to find turnkey ways for retirees to convert assets in their 401(k), such as plan sponsors putting up roadblocks to the popular lump-sum distribution.