It could help settle debts, pay for emergency medical expenses, purchase your dream home, or see your child through college. You can actually sell structured settlement payments, just a portion of it, as opposed to all of it. How much you choose to sell should be dictated by your specific needs. Here are the five most important tips, which you can use before you sell settlement annuities for cash:

1. Take Your Time Looking for a Reputable Structured Settlement Buyer

You need to scrutinize the private investor, who is ready to buy structured settlement payments from you. Read all about their options and testimonials to determine what clients say about them before you choose their services. Check if they are a member of the Better Business Bureau. You need to be sure that you are getting the most value for your settlement.

2. Ask for Certification

Selling structured settlements to unregistered or illegitimate companies can leave you helpless and without the cash you need. If you do not exercise caution, you are in danger of being victimized by scams that may leave you very little cash or no cash at all! It pays to consult a legal advisor, stay alert and choose a trustworthy firm when you have decided to sell settlement payments.

3. Know Your Rights

Speak with a legal advisor to determine what the law permits and what rights you are entitled to before you sell structured settlements. Always remember that selling your structured settlement is completely a legal process and individuals have been buying and selling them for years. Most states in the U.S. allow you to sell your structured annuities in a risk-free manner.

4. Have a Long Term Plan

Evaluate your current financial standings, determine the obligations, your plans for the future, and consider if selling all or a part of your structured settlement can help you meet your goals.

5. Seek Advice

As with any other financial transaction, it is important that you seek expert advice and several opinions before you agree to sell structured settlement payments. Most companies will give you a free quote. Take a look at several offers and determine if it is worth selling your settlement payments or not.

Whenever an individual receiving periodic payments under a structured settlement wishes to sell some or all of his future payments for a lump sum of, the cash flows are sold at a discount in exchange for the lump sum payment. This discounted structured settlement is then available for sale to those who buy settlement payments. This way of acquiring the payment streams at a discount directly from the seller is how the buyer receives very favorable yields. This transaction is normally facilitated by a financial broker on behalf of the seller (or annuitant) and the buyer.

These structured settlements usually make more than twice the yearly rates of municipal or corporate bonds, bank issued certificates of deposit (CDs), or government issued treasury securities. Those who buy structured settlement payments can certainly purchase a structured settlement annuity directly from an insurance company, but these direct annuity investments are backed by the same insurance companies as the structured settlements arranged by a broker, and they are typically originated with large sales charges or commissions, and offer considerably lower yields.

Those who buy structured settlement payments can be individuals, retirement plans, corporate entities, foundations, trusts, through investment clubs, or group investment accounts.

The Primary Advantages of Buying Structured Settlement Annuities

1.    significantly higher yields from structured settlement annuities when compared to fixed rate investments

2.    a reliable source of income over a defined period of time, based on the terms and conditions of the structured settlement he bought

3.    the opportunity to increase the buyer’s yields in personal holdings

4.    maximum income after retirement

5.    the preservation of principal for later years

6.    control throughout the investment process

7.    the backing/support of a annuity contract issued by a state regulated insurance carrier with a high credit rating (from “A” to “AAA”)

8.    control throughout the investment process

Those who buy settlement payments Structured settlement purchasers receive their assignment of the structured settlement payment rights directly from the seller through an approved court approval process, and the purchaser receives the future cash flows directly from the rated insurance company that is obligated to make the payments. At no time during the lifecycle of the asset should the broker have possession, or control, of the purchaser’s money.

In today’s litigious society, one may easily find themselves in possession of a structured settlement. Structured settlements are long-term payoffs of successful lawsuits. The settlement payout normally lasts many years to prevent the defendant from going bankrupt.

It seems to be the ideal way to mete out justice: the plaintiff gets the greatest possible compensation; the defendant is duly sanctioned without being forced into bankruptcy; and the court’s time and costs are saved by both sides. However, the drawn out payment plan does not appeal to every plaintiff, especially those who need cash for pressing needs such as college tuition and medical emergencies.

Why Lump Sum Settlements Are Rare

Unfortunately for those plaintiffs, since settlement amounts are usually figures of four digits or higher, it is unlikely that courts will make defendants pay a lump sum unless the defendant is quite wealthy.

Cash for Structured Settlement Payments

They can still get lump sum cash for structured settlements though – by selling those future settlement payments.

The safest way to sell structured settlement payments is to find a firm that specializes in buying structured settlement payments. There are so many companies out there and offers will vary from firm to firm. The wise settlement recipient takes his time and shops around till he knows he’s got top dollar. Those who sell structured settlement payments for cash should also seek the services of an attorney and a financial adviser to help navigate the legal and financial jargon that complicate such transactions.

Sell Structured Settlements for Cash: The People & Process

The process of getting cash for structured settlement payments takes 40-60 days to complete. Much of that time is spent establishing a court date to get the necessary court approval. There are four parties that participate in the sale process:

1.    The Seller

2.    Certified Consultants who present financial options to sellers and facilitate the completion of the transaction.

3.    The Attorney who prepares the legal paperwork and arranges the court date. He is also present at the final closing of the sale.

4.    The Judge who reviews the seller’s application to sell structured settlement payments. If the court decides that the sale is in the seller’s best interests, the sale is approved.

Getting cash for structured settlement payments are governed by transfer laws that differ from state to state. It is therefore vital for sellers to work with people who understand these state laws to ensure the seller gets the best value from the transaction.