Whether you have previously sold all your guaranteed payments or you have not sold before but are currently receiving life contingent payments, there are some things you need to know if you are contemplating liquidating payments for a lump sum in 2020.
Getting Multiple Offers for Life Contingent Payments is the “Smart Thing” to Do:
Whether you are looking to get a specific amount of money or simply an idea of how much money could be paid to you for life contingent payments, it is a good idea to speak with more than a single life contingent structured settlement or annuity buyer. This is for two reasons:
1. Another Company May Pay You More for the Same Life Contingent Payments
It may come as a surprise to you but one company may offer a greater lump sum purchase price for the same payments than a second company. While it takes time, it is important you consider whether rushing to get process started is of greater import to you than speaking to more than one buyer to try to maximize your payout.
2. One Company May Offer You the Same Amount of Money for Life Contingent Payments for LESS payments
For example, in 2020, one life contingent structured settlement payment buyer may offer you $20,000 for 120 payments but another company may offer you the exact same $20,000 but for only 100 payments. By speaking to multiple companies as part of your process you may discover you can either get more money for the same payments, or sell less payments and get the same amount of money.
Getting a “No, we cannot help you in 2018 (for example)” may not mean you will get the same answer in 2020:
As rates continue to fluctuate in 2020 but are by and large at very low levels, companies have the ability to make offers for your deferred life contingent payments that they previously were unable to make. For example, in 2012 you may have called around to see if you could sell your life contingent payments due in 2040 and were told that you could not liquidate them. Today, however, with lower rates and the passage of time, you may now be able to access funds for those payments.
The More Information the Better But if You Do Not Have it Do Not Worry About It:
In an ideal world you would know exactly how much your life contingent payments will be when they come back to you (i.e, the annuity issuer starts remitting the checks to you) and know the exact date they will start being paid. We know, however, that sometimes you simply do not know, do not have the necessary documents and the annuity issuer making the life contingent payments is making it hard to get the information. Do No Worry! We have an entire team dedicated to researching through public records that may be able to find the documents and if that doesn’t get you and us the information we need, we can facilitate (in many situations) getting you an updated letter from your annuity issuer that details the timing and size of your life contingent payments.
“I’m Not Sure I Have Life Contingent Payments”:
This is a common thing we hear from people we speak to and we understand that with lawsuits settled years (if not decades ago), it is often hard to know the specific terms of settlement. Maybe it was settled as a minor, maybe you have moved several times and don’t know where your documents are, or maybe your attorney has since retired and you can not get in contact with that attorney to procure the necessary papers. In any of these situations or if you don’t know for any reason, we can work with you to discover if life contingent payments exist under your original structured settlement.
In the section below we have covered a few Frequently Asked Questions about Selling Life Contingent Payments and linked them to appropriate informative and educational pages:
1. What are the options for selling life contingent annuity payments?
2. Confused regarding valuation of life contingent structured settlement payments?
3. Sell your life contingent settlement annuity payments for top dollar.
4. What are the pros and cons of selling life contingent structured settlement payments?
5. What it takes to sell structured settlement payments for a lump sum?
6. What are the general things to consider while selling life contingent structured payments?
