Regular readers know how I feel about variable annuities, but have little issue with the immediate annuity. Now, one issue that would hit us if you wished to put an immediate annuity inside an IRA is the calculation of RMDs and taking RMDs that may exceed the cash available within the IRA.
IRS Regulation section 1.401 (a) (9)-6 offers a solution.
If an immediate annuity is qualified and based on a payout scheme that is not intended to exceed your life expectancy the annual payout satisfies the RMD requirement even if it is less than would otherwise
be required. Perhaps a bit of an obscure issue, but one you may run into at retirement.
Joe