Secure Term MVA Fixed Annuity II 3-Year review

Yes, for the right buyer. If you have a firm three-year time horizon, want principal protection, and value financial-strength credentials, this is a solid choice. It is less compelling if your timeline is flexible or if you might need more than the free-withdrawal amount before the three years are up — the MVA makes unplanned exits unpredictably expensive in a rising-rate environment.

The rational case comes down to two things: certainty and carrier quality. You get a locked rate for three years with no market exposure, and you get it from an insurer that carries A++ from A.M. Best — a rating held by very few carriers in the country. For a buyer moving money out of a maturing CD, a bond ladder, or another short-term fixed vehicle, the combination of a competitive rate band and New York Life's balance sheet is a meaningful value proposition. The rate tiers also make this worth a closer look for buyers with larger deposits; the step-up from the base $15K tier to the $100K and $1.5M tiers is material.

I think this product is best for conservative savers who are parking a specific sum for exactly three years and have no expectation of needing to break the contract early. That could be someone bridging to retirement, sheltering a rollover while planning their distribution strategy, or simply laddering fixed-rate instruments in tax-deferred or non-qualified accounts. The wide issue-age range, including inherited IRA eligibility starting at age 0, also makes this a legitimate option for beneficiaries navigating inherited account rules. It is not the right fit for anyone who might need principal access above the free-withdrawal limit before maturity — the MVA makes that scenario costly and unpredictable.

You are buying a three-year interest rate lock from New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation, backed by the parent company's A++ financial strength. Your principal does not participate in any market index. The rate is set at issue and guaranteed for the full term. At the end of three years, you have options: take the money, roll it into another contract, or annuitize. During the three years, your access is limited but not zero — the free-withdrawal provision gives you a meaningful annual release valve. What makes this product different from a plain MYGA is the market value adjustment, which is a contractual mechanism that adjusts your surrender value up or down based on where interest rates stand at the time of withdrawal relative to when you bought in.

The core feature is the guaranteed fixed rate, which is locked for all three years. The rate you receive depends on your deposit amount at issue — the contract uses four premium bands: $15,000 to $24,999, $25,000 to $49,999, $50,000 to $99,999, $100,000 to $1,499,999, and $1,500,000 and above. As of early May 2026, those bands corresponded to rates of roughly 4.05%, 4.05%, 4.25%, 4.45%, and 4.70% respectively, all guaranteed for three years. These rates will change over time — check the current rate sheet before purchasing, as the tiers and amounts shift with the broader rate environment.

The interest compounds annually inside the contract. At maturity, the full account value — premium plus accumulated interest — is available to you without any surrender charge or MVA.

The most meaningful secondary feature is the free-withdrawal provision, which is more generous than many MYGAs in this class. For premiums below $100,000, you can withdraw up to 10% of account value immediately in any contract year. For premiums at $100,000 or more, you can take the greater of 10% of account value or 100% of all interest credited to date. That second tier is particularly useful for larger deposits because it gives you access to every dollar of interest the contract has earned without triggering a surrender charge or MVA. For RMD purposes, the contract is also RMD-friendly — required minimum distributions can be taken without surrender penalty, which removes a meaningful friction point for qualified accounts.

The stated surrender charge is 7% in each of the three contract years — there is no step-down. That flat schedule is less favorable than MYGAs that reduce the charge annually (for example, 7%, 6%, 5%). If you exit in year two, the charge is the same as year one.

But the more important liquidity feature to understand is the market value adjustment. The MVA — Market Value Adjustment — is a formula that adjusts the surrender value you receive based on the difference between the interest rate environment when you bought the contract and the rate environment when you exit early. If rates have risen since your purchase date, the MVA reduces your payout on top of the surrender charge. If rates have fallen, the MVA can actually work in your favor and partially offset the surrender charge. In a period of rising or volatile rates, the MVA introduces real uncertainty about your actual early-exit cost — the 7% charge is the floor, not the ceiling.

Emergency waivers are available for nursing home confinement, disability, and unemployment, which can waive or reduce surrender charges in qualifying situations. Those provisions are subject to contract terms and state availability.

There is no explicit annual contract fee, no rider fee, and no mortality and expense charge. The cost of this contract is embedded in the spread between the rate New York Life earns on its general account investments and the rate it credits to you — which is how most MYGAs are priced, not unusual for the category.

The structural tradeoffs are the flat surrender schedule and the MVA. Most competing MYGAs with 3-year terms offer either a declining schedule (7/6/5 or similar) or no MVA — this product has both a flat 7% charge and an MVA, which is a less flexible combination than many short-term alternatives. For a buyer who is genuinely committed to a three-year hold with no anticipated early exit, these tradeoffs are mostly theoretical. For a buyer with any uncertainty about the timeline, they matter a great deal.

Legal Entity: New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation

Parent: New York Life Insurance Company

A.M. Best Rating: A++

New York Life is one of the few major insurers to hold an A++ rating from A.M. Best — the highest rating available. It is a mutual company, meaning it has no shareholders, which is a structural point some conservative buyers find meaningful. For a product in this category, where principal protection is the whole point, the carrier's financial strength is not a marketing detail — it is part of what you are paying for.