Module I – Investment Concepts and Principles
The income-oriented investor must weigh return and risk. Using proven strategies can remove much of the angst. Packaged portfolios provide flexibility; an alternative that is easy to comprehend, monitor, and compare against similar offerings. The role of cash equivalents is often mistakenly left out of the process.

• Balanced financial growth, asset classifications, and concepts of risk
• Investment strategies and modern portfolio theory
• DCA, laddering, target retirement funds, and risk tolerance and assessment
• Fundamental, sentiment, and technical analysis
• Cash reserves, equivalents, and other savings vehicles

Module II – Bond Building Blocks, Convertibles, and Riding the Yield Curve
There is good reason why the fixed-income marketplace is several times greater than the equities markets. Bonds and notes provide a predictable income stream. The variations of principal pricing are something few investors understand. The varieties of debt instruments is truly staggering. The practitioner who understands the different domestic and foreign offerings stands alone. Convertibles and zero-coupon issues present their own special features and risks.

• Credit and quality ratings, savings bonds, TIPS, plus government securities and the auction
• Municipal bonds: TEYs, GO vs. revenue bonds, YTM vs. current yield, and AMT bonds
• Callable and prerefunded issues, insured bonds, plus TANs, RANs, and BANs
• Capital appreciation bonds, buying out-of state securities, and OTC trading
• Investment grade vs. high yield, trading flat and in arrears, plus indentures and debentures
• Guaranteed, mortgage, sinking fund, CMOs, and put bonds
• Mortgage-backed vs. ABS, negative convexity, GNMAs, FNMAs, and Freddie Macs
• Bond risks, fiduciary constraints, rate forecasts, yield spreads, hybrids, and convertibles
• Foreign bonds: the EU, currency risk, and international fixed-income alternatives
• Convertible securities, the conversion ratio, types of risk, and margin accounts
• Par, premium, and discount, points and "the handle," and accrued interest
• Pricing zeros, straight-line amortization, basis points, and duration
• YTM vs. YTC vs. yield-to-worst, the inverse relationship, and cushion bonds

Module III – Retirement Planning and Planning for Death
The financial planning process consists of five steps: goals, objectives, strategies, implementation, and performance review. Compounding and present value show the practitioner the impact of growth over time as well as the effects of inflation. Pension plans are just one option that can be used for income during retirement. The issue of what happens after death needs to be addressed.

• Overview of financial planning, scope, process, and typical planning goals
• Economic and stock market indicators, time value analysis, and retirement income shortfalls
• Qualified plans, IRAs, cafeteria plans, the annuity matrix, plus EIAs and private annuities
• Social security, the estate funnel, and evaluating the risk of death
• Powers of attorney, living wills, intestate succession, anatomy of a will, and letters of instruction
• Federal and state estate tax calculations, the marital deduction, and present interest gifts
• Anatomy of a will, exemption trust wills, and executor duties
• Life insurance, QTIP, charitable, and grantor retained annuity trusts
• Minors, insurable interests, life insurance costs, and beneficiary arrangements

Module IV – Income Taxes, Social Security, and Medicare
An income specialist must have knowledge of income taxes. Finding ways to lower taxable income is the easiest and safest way to increase a client's monthly check without taking on additional risk. As we age, health care costs and insurance become an increasingly important part of our lives. Federal and state programs become less intimidating if the insured is knowledgeable about benefits and costs.

• Tax formula for individuals, filing status, exemptions, and who must file a return
• The standard deduction, deductions, credits, and overview of capital gains and losses
• Interest and dividend income, taxation of annuities and insurance, plus passive losses
• Retirement plan withdrawals and taxation, rollovers, medical expenses, and installment sales
• Child and dependent care credits, unearned income of a minor, and the AMT
• Home health and hospice care, Medicare payments, and hospital insurance
• What the Medicare patient pays, gaps in coverage and enrollment, and Medigap plans

Module V – Stocks, Utilities, Real Estate, Withdrawal Plans, and Living Benefits
Regardless of age, common stocks should comprise part of the portfolio. An often-ignored category represents an equity play with bond characteristics. The home often represents the largest holding. People feel comfortable owning real estate, yet other forms of ownership are usually ignored. The new generation of variable annuities allows conservative investors to fully participate in the stock market with no downside risk coupled with a minimum rate of return.

• Equity classifications, measures of value, reports, tables, orders, and surviving a bear market
• Utilities: being your own analyst, preferreds, performance, convertibles, and bond comparisons
• The primary residence, vacation homes, condominiums, and interval ownership
• REITs, partnerships, oil and gas, precious metals, collectibles, and commodities
• Systematic withdrawal tax benefits, withdrawal rates, points of no return, and "the wow" factor
• Using S&P 500 and other illustrations plus client perceptions
• Variable annuity living benefits, distribution phase concerns, which benefit is best
• Living benefits: reasons to be more aggressive, costs vs. benefits, plus what to watch out for
• Guaranteed vs. current values, enhancing an annuity's death benefit, and questions to ask

Module VI – ETFs, Closed-End Funds, Conservative Options, Stretch IRAs, and Reverse Mortgages
The popularity of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has grown exponentially. This relatively new investment vehicle fits well within the passive portion of the portfolio. Options are rightly considered high risk, but covered call writing is the one exception that can significantly reduce equity risk. Closed-end funds (CEFs) represent many of the advantages of traditional mutual funds and can frequently bought at a discount, providing higher income with a greater level of safety.

• CEFs: dividends, distributions, discounts and premiums, plus leveraged closed-end funds
• ETFs: differences, creation, advantages and disadvantages, correlations, rankings, and observations
• Limited risk of option buyer, covered call writing, option pricing, the OCC, LEAPS, and alternatives
• Spiders and the S&P 500, leverage, a different covered call perspective, and reasons not to sell calls
• Duration of distributions using a stretch IRA and naming the proper successor beneficiary
• Roth IRAs and conversions, RMDs, IRS life expectancies, and inherited IRAs
• Multiple beneficiaries and stretch IRAs, disclaimers and contingents, plus early distributions
• Stretching the truth using stretch illustrations, setting up a stretch, plus re-characterizations
• Types of reverse mortgages, HECM vs. proprietary reverse mortgages, and federal insurance
• Postponing the mortgage and alternate considerations