SecureFore 7-Year review

Yes, for the right buyer. If you have a genuine seven-year horizon, want a guaranteed rate, and value simplicity over upside potential, SecureFore 7 is a straightforward choice. It is less appropriate if you might need more than 10% of the contract in any given year, are uncomfortable with a seven-year commitment, or want any kind of income-rider feature layered on top.

The rational case for SecureFore 7 is rate certainty. CDs and short-term Treasuries are easy to understand but require reinvestment decisions every year or two, and rates can shift significantly at renewal. A seven-year MYGA locks in today's rate for the full term. For someone who thinks rates may drop, or simply does not want to manage rollover decisions, that guarantee has real value — especially with no MVA exposure if circumstances require taking more than the free-withdrawal amount.

I think SecureFore 7 is best for pre-retirees or retirees in their late 50s to early 70s who have a block of money they will not need for seven years — think funds earmarked for the back half of retirement, legacy planning, or a specific long-term goal. It also fits well inside a tax-deferred IRA (it is RMD-friendly, meaning required minimum distributions are typically handled without penalty) or as a non-qualified account for someone focused on tax-deferred growth. It is not a fit for someone who may need liquidity or wants inflation-linked or equity-linked returns.

A MYGA is an insurance contract, not a CD — but the mechanics are close enough to compare directly. You hand over a lump sum, the insurer guarantees a fixed interest rate for the contract term, and your principal grows on a tax-deferred basis inside the contract. At the end of the term, you can take the proceeds, roll into another annuity, or annuitize. The key difference from a bank CD is the tax treatment (deferred rather than annually taxable on interest) and the insurance wrapper, which adds the death benefit and waiver provisions described below. The key difference from a bond fund is that your principal is contractually guaranteed — there is no mark-to-market risk during the term.

SecureFore 7 credits a single fixed declared rate locked at contract issue for the full seven-year term. There are no indices, no participation rates, no caps, and no annual reset decisions to make. The rate bands at time of the source documents ran from 5.00% to 5.20% depending on premium size — the higher band applies at higher deposit amounts. Once issued, that rate does not change regardless of what interest rates do during the term, which works in your favor if rates fall and against you if rates rise significantly. The rate is the whole story here; the structural question is simply whether it is competitive against alternatives at the time you apply.

The absence of an MVA — Market Value Adjustment — is worth noting explicitly. Many MYGAs apply an MVA on withdrawals above the free amount during the surrender period. An MVA ties the surrender penalty to prevailing interest rates: if rates have risen since you bought, the MVA increases your effective penalty; if rates have fallen, it can reduce it. SecureFore 7 does not apply an MVA, which means your surrender charge exposure is exactly what the schedule says — no more, no less. In a rising-rate environment, that is a meaningful consumer-friendly feature for a seven-year commitment.

SecureFore 7 allows 10% of the beginning-of-year contract value as a penalty-free withdrawal each year (10% of total premiums paid in year one). That provision is available immediately — not deferred to year two as some MYGAs require. Amounts above the free withdrawal are subject to the following schedule: 8% in years one and two, 7% in year three, 6% in year four, 5% in year five, 4% in year six, 3% in year seven, and 0% after. No MVA applies.

Two waiver provisions also apply: a terminal illness waiver and a nursing home confinement waiver (90 days or more of confinement; 60 days in California, Delaware, Florida, and North Dakota). RMDs from qualified accounts attributable to this contract are generally available without surrender charges, which makes the product workable inside an IRA. Even with those provisions, this is long-term money — anyone who might need more than 10% per year should treat that as a disqualifying factor.

There are no explicit fees here. No base contract fee, no rider fee, no spread taken from credited interest. The cost of owning this product is entirely in the opportunity cost of the commitment: you earn a fixed rate and give up liquidity for seven years, full stop.

The tradeoffs are structural rather than fee-based. First, rate risk: if market interest rates rise significantly after you lock in, you will earn below the new market rate for the remaining term. Second, inflation risk: a fixed nominal rate provides no inflation adjustment. Third, the surrender schedule front-loads the penalty at 8% — someone who locks in and discovers they need the money in year one or two faces a meaningful charge. The no-MVA design mitigates one dimension of that risk, but the base surrender charge is still real.

Legal Entity: Forethought Life Insurance Company

Parent: Global Atlantic Financial Group

A.M. Best Rating: A