Structured Settlement Annuity Buyers: Know Before You Sell

To find a buyer of structured settlement annuity payments, the initial settlement recipient must first do some research on the potential buyer of their structured annuity settlement. They should find out what kinds of programs the potential buyer offers because companies that buy structured settlements usually offer lump sums of money in exchange for the right to get your payments. Before signing the contract, the customer needs a clear and written explanation of what percentage the company will take off their total value to pay them. Every transaction is unique so even if they know someone who’s dealt with this kind of thing in the past, they’ll still need to consult the company’s underwriters to help them through the fine print. Keep in mind that most people will get 50 percent of their settlement in return or sometimes even less if they’re not careful. Although the process can take anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks to complete, there are some sales out there that have been held up by regulations and have taken months or even years to complete so some patience might be required on the customers part.

Whatever they do, the customer needs to know they’re dealing with a reputable buyer of structured settlement annuity payments. One way to tell them apart from the shylocks and fly-by-night operations is that the good ones will require or at the very least gently persuade a client to get advice of an attorney before proceeding with the transaction. A lawyer should definitely review the agreement as whenever their client is dealing in a lot of money, it is essential that they get advice on contracts and transactions. They also should verify that the company buying the settlement has a department where either ex-clients or specialists can walk prospective customers through the process of a settlement sale. It wouldn’t hurt to check how long they’ve been in business either; if the company’s been around for say, 130 years, they probably don’t make it a point to cheat people out of their money. It might be good to get an outside opinion of the company as well; do an internet search on the company and see if any former customers bad-mouth the company on any forums or blogs.
If after all of this, they decide to keep the settlement payments instead of allowing the prospective buyer of their structured annuity settlement to purchase it, the money they get will not be worth as much in the future due to inflation and the weakness of the US dollar in recent years. There are ways to make this income “inflation-proof” and a good financial professional will be aware of those methods and will be able to tailor a solution to their particular situation. Sure that may require some trust, but they’ll have to trust someone at some point. And if they trust the right person at the right time, they’ll be able to get as much out of their money as possible, regardless of whether they use a buyer of structured settlement annuity payments or not.