There are many different situations when you will benefit if you buy annuity - an investment option offered by insurance companies. Annuities allow you to accumulate savings and start receiving the evenly distributed payouts after the accumulation period has passed. There are several things that you need to know when you buy annuity investment vehicles. First of all, before you buy annuity, you should look at the specific rules and requirements of this specific annuity investment. Each insurance company will offer different types of annuities with different laws and rules governing them. What is offered at one insurance company may not be available at another. You will even notice the differences when you buy annuity investments in different states as state laws differ. If you decided to buy annuity investments you should know the different types of annuities that are available to you. The fixed annuity offers you the opportunity to received regular payouts and earn fixed interest rate on your investment. If you decide to buy annuity and the annuity type is variable, the actual annuity value will depend on the annuity's investment performance. Variable annuities also offer tax deferment options and death benefits. The indexed annuity lies somewhere in between of the fixed and variable annuities. You can also buy annuity investment that is variable in nature but offers minimum performance interest rate. So how would you actually buy annuity investments? You will need to buy annuity either directly from an insurance company or with the help of your broker. You may have a wealth manager or your employer's internment managing partner do this type of investment for you. Depending on the type of annuity you will either have to make a lump payment or may decide to make a series of periodic payments for a number of terms after a certain time period passes by. You will also have to specify when the payouts have to start.