I know very little about retirement options such as annuities and IRA's. I know some of the basics but thats about it. My mom who is currently 61 was laid off from her job of 37 years but still recieved her pension in one lump sum of around $250,000. My dad had this money transfered into a regular IRA and it is just sitting there. My dad decided it might be best to put the money into an annuity so he called a financial advisor and he recommended a john hancock annuity called "john hancock venture opportunity" annuity. This is all the money my parents have for retirement. I don't know what to do but after reading about annuities it seems they have really high fees. I am also worried that after they die that john hancock will keep the remainder of the balance. Can anybody please help. I am so worried that they are going to make a bad decision and funny enough put me in charge of doing some research. My dad has a meeting with the joohn hancock rep on sept 30th. Do you guys think that this type of annuity is a good thing? What happens to the account balance if they were to die? I am thoroughly confused. Please excuse my ignorance and try not to make fun of it. Thanks in advance.