What is your definition of competitive returns?  Annuities are not designed to compete with market returns.  That being said, Fixed Indexed Annuities might, I said might be able to do that.

If you want an annuity to keep up with market gains during a long term bull market like we saw from 1982 thru 1999 you won’t, but if you are looking to keep up with a market situation like we’ve seen since 2000 it could.  I said could.

Annuities are not designed to keep up with the market, but they might.  Annuities should be utilized for what they will do not what they might do.

I won’t address Variable Annuities, I am not securities licensed so can’t answer that end of the equation.