"Employees have always been able to take all or part of their 401(k) retirement account balances and buy a commercial annuity to guarantee lifetime payments. But there's renewed interest in a lesser-known, potentially cheaper option to guarantee lifetime payments -- the DC to DB rollover. To make this move, you have to work for a company that offers both a 401(k) defined contribution plan and a traditional defined benefit pension plan, and offers the option to roll assets from the former (the DC plan) to the latter (the DB pension). When you leave the company or retire, you transfer 401(k) assets to the pension plan, and the pension plan converts the rollover amount to an annuity that is actuarially equal to the amount you transferred, guaranteeing you additional lifetime payments in excess of your basic pension checks."

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