Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
Secure Term MVA IV earns a Good Option rating because it delivers what a conservative MYGA buyer actually wants — a locked rate from one of the strongest carriers in the industry, clean fee-free design, and a full-account-value death benefit. What holds it to 4.0 rather than higher is the combination of channel restriction (Fidelity only), geographic restriction (CA and NY only), the $50,000 minimum that raises the entry bar, and an MVA that adds a layer of exit uncertainty most competing MYGAs do not carry.
The short version
This is a five-year locked-rate annuity for conservative savers who want a guarantee they can actually trust, distributed exclusively through Fidelity in California and New York. The crediting is simple — one fixed rate, locked for the full term — and the carrier behind it is New York Life, which carries an A++ rating from A.M. Best, the highest grade that agency assigns. For someone who wants no complexity, no fees, and a financially unimpeachable issuer, this is a compelling product. The catch is the MVA: if you need to exit early, your actual penalty is not just the stated surrender charge. It also includes a market value adjustment that moves up or down with interest rates — meaning the cost of getting out early is less predictable than it looks on paper.
Key facts
The full review
Is New York Life Secure Term MVA Fixed Annuity IV Fidelity 5-Year a Good Annuity?
Yes, for a specific type of buyer. If you are a Fidelity client in California or New York, you have $50,000 of money you genuinely will not need for five years, and you want a guaranteed return from a carrier with the highest possible financial-strength rating, this is a well-structured product. If you are not already a Fidelity client, live outside CA or NY, have less than $50,000 to place, or want access to index-linked upside, this product is simply not available or not the right fit.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The rational case for this product starts with the carrier. New York Life is one of the oldest and most financially sound insurance companies in the United States. For buyers who are acutely worried about carrier solvency — something that matters more as contract sizes grow — A++ is a real differentiator. The second reason is simplicity. There are no strategy choices, no allocation decisions, no rider costs. You put in money, a rate is guaranteed for five years, and at the end you have principal plus interest. A third reason is the tiered rate structure: the rate improves at $100,000 and again at $1,500,000, so larger deposits are meaningfully rewarded.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think this product is best for a conservative pre-retiree or retiree in their 60s or 70s who has significant non-retirement or IRA savings at Fidelity and wants to park a meaningful sum in a guaranteed instrument without taking any market risk. It suits both qualified and non-qualified money, including inherited IRAs, given the 0–85 issue age range. It is less appealing for someone who wants index participation, needs liquidity flexibility above the 10% free-withdrawal amount, or is shopping for lifetime income — none of those use cases are served here.
What You're Really Buying Here
You are buying a contractual promise from New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation — a subsidiary of New York Life Insurance Company — to credit your account at a fixed, declared interest rate for exactly five years. There are no moving parts. The rate is guaranteed from day one. What you are paying for that certainty is a five-year liquidity commitment and the presence of a market value adjustment that makes early exit unpredictable in cost. In exchange, you get the backing of an insurer that has paid its obligations without interruption for over 175 years. For buyers who treat that kind of institutional stability as worth paying for, the trade is straightforward.
How the Core Feature Works
The crediting is entirely fixed-rate. At issue, New York Life declares a guaranteed rate that applies for the full five-year term. As of the rate sheet in the source materials, rates were tiered: 4.45% for premiums under $100,000, 4.70% for premiums of $100,000 or more, and 4.70% for premiums of $1,500,000 or more. Those figures are snapshots from May 2026 and will change; what does not change once your contract is issued is the rate locked in for your term.
Interest credits at that rate daily or annually (the precise crediting frequency is not specified in the brochure materials — confirm this with Fidelity at point of sale). There are no index allocations, no participation rates, no caps to track. The rate you see on day one is the rate you earn for five years.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The secondary feature worth understanding is the Market Value Adjustment, or MVA. When you withdraw more than the free-withdrawal amount during the surrender period, New York Life applies both a stated surrender charge and an MVA. The MVA adjusts your surrender value up or down based on how interest rates have moved since you bought the contract. If rates have risen since you issued, the MVA works against you — your surrender value is reduced more than the charge schedule alone would suggest. If rates have fallen, the MVA works in your favor.
This mechanism matters because it means the true cost of early exit is not simply "Year 3 surrender charge is 7%." Depending on the rate environment, your actual cost could be meaningfully higher. For buyers who are confident they will not need the money, this is not a concern. For buyers who are less certain, it is a real consideration that differentiates this product from MVA-free MYGAs from other carriers.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
Free withdrawals of 10% of account value are available immediately — not after a waiting period — as long as you maintain a minimum $2,000 balance in the account. That is a notable provision; many MYGAs make you wait until the second contract year for free access. For buyers with RMDs, this immediacy is useful.
Beyond the 10% free amount, the surrender schedule runs: 7%, 7%, 7%, 6%, 5% across years one through five. That is toward the higher end of the 3-5 year peer group for a five-year product, and the MVA on top of those charges is an additional layer of exit cost. Required minimum distributions are not explicitly addressed in the available brochure materials — confirm RMD treatment with Fidelity before purchasing if this is a qualified account.
| Contract Year | Surrender Charge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 7% |
| 2 | 7% |
| 3 | 7% |
| 4 | 6% |
| 5 | 5% |
Fees and Tradeoffs
There are no stated base contract fees, rider fees, or annual administrative charges. The fixed-rate structure means there are no spreads or participation-rate haircuts to worry about. This is a genuinely fee-light product.
The real cost of this annuity is structural, not explicit: the surrender charges are steep for a 5-year product, the MVA adds exit uncertainty, the minimum is $50,000, and the product is only accessible through Fidelity in two states. For buyers inside that access window, those constraints may be entirely acceptable. For buyers outside it, they are disqualifying.
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Product Type | Fixed Annuity |
| Surrender Period | 5 years |
| Issue Ages | 0-85 (Inherited IRA); 0-85 (NQ); 18-85 (Q) |
| Minimum Premium | $50,000 |
| Crediting Methods | Fixed Account |
| Free Withdrawal | 10% of Account Value immediately (must leave $2,000 in account). |
| MGSV | 3.00% guaranteed annual return |
| Death Benefit | Full Account Value |
| Income Rider | Not available |
| Premium Bonus | None |
| Availability | Approved in CA, NY. Must be contracted through Fidelity to sell this product. |
Carrier snapshot
Legal Entity: New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation
Parent: New York Life Insurance Company
A.M. Best Rating: A++
New York Life Insurance Company is one of the largest mutual life insurers in the United States and has never missed a policyholder obligation in its operating history. The A++ rating from A.M. Best is the highest grade that agency assigns and places New York Life in a small group of elite carriers. For buyers who treat carrier financial strength as the primary selection criterion, this is a meaningful data point.
Final take
Secure Term MVA IV is the right product for a narrow but real audience: Fidelity clients in California or New York with $50,000 or more who want five years of guaranteed return from the strongest-rated carrier in the business and do not need liquidity beyond the 10% free-withdrawal provision. For that buyer, the simplicity is a feature, not a limitation.
For anyone outside that profile — in another state, at a different institution, with a smaller deposit, or with any desire for index participation or income guarantees — there is likely a better-matched MYGA available without the access constraints or the MVA uncertainty. The product earns its rating not by being broadly competitive, but by being exceptionally well-suited to the specific buyer it was designed to reach.