Here’s a true paradox about annuities and annuity rates; they’re simple and complicated. “The basic annuity is easy to understand: With a single-premium immediate annuity, you hand over a lump sum to an insurance company and you’ll receive a set amount of guaranteed income for life, no matter how long you live,” states Kim Lankford for AARP. “The payouts are based primarily on your age, your gender and the interest rates when you buy the annuity.” Income annuities “can be useful for prospective retirees who lack meaningful streams of retirement income, like Social Security and pension, or for …