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Structured Settlements Information
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What is a Trust and what are the Benefits? Trusts are becoming a popular way to structure business and personal affairs. If you are considering using a trust in any way, you should be clear on the legal obligations and the relationships involved. Always make sure you obtain proper advice before setting up a trust. Most lawyers are proficient in this area, but it is still advisable to talk to a legal advisor specialising in this area. Keeping the Lawsuit End in Mind 2 key points to stay focused on, as you are settling your lawsuit; a quick and fair settlement and consideration for current and future needs. The process of settling a lawsuit can be a tedious and mysterious event. Relying on your busy attorney to keep you informed can be an exercise in frustration. The entire process can seem as slow as molasses. Compounding the pain could be the financial and emotional difficulties caused by the source of the lawsuit itself. Lucky Have you ever looked around and wondered how everyone is buying houses? Are they really doing that much better than you are? Maybe. Maybe not. Some people have gone deep into debt to purchase a home and are teetering on the brink of financial free fall. Others used creative unconventional financing to afford a home. There may be not-yet discovered risks and consequences to this type of home financing. But there is a fairly substantial group of people who were able to buy a house because they were the recipients of some unexpected or untraditional cash windfall. The Cash Now Question If you have ever been in a bind for cash you know the stress, the weight of not being able to pay your bills. In these desperate times, desperate measures are often taken. Expensive loans, overused credit cards, and a snowball of events quickly complicate your financial position. Once the collectors begin their relentless pursuit of your sanity, the road to financial prosperity seems a million miles away. On the scene arrives your hero, the "Cash Now" guy. What is Structured Settlement? Because it is tailor-made for individual cases, the structure may also include some immediate payment to cover special damages. The payment is usually made through purchase of an annuity from a Life Insurance Company. Subcontractor A trade contractor such as a roofer who usually subcontracts with a general contractor. Subrogation Once a company has paid a loss for which someone other than the policyholder is responsible, it may have the right to recover this loss. Consider a Structured Settlement? Structured settlements have been around for a long time however their popularity has steadily increased over the past 6 years. In 1999 only 7% of insurance settlements that were under $7,000 were completed as structured settlements. While we don't have hard data for the current year, the number is much higher now. Surviving High Debt States Are you more likely to have more debt according to what state you live in? In a recent report done by Experian on the debt averages per state, the answer is yes! The report, compiled from approximately 3 million consumers nationwide, shows that the North East states of New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island have the highest average overall debt in the nation of $16,845, $15,314 and $14,643. The report measures overall debt of a consumer; everything present on a credit report, including credit cards and installment debts but excluding mortgage debt. Massachusetts, Maine and Delaware also followed closely behind the top three. A Revolutionary Fundraising Opportunity -- Life Settlements Amid fundraisers' growing concerns about the current charitable giving climate, dampened by the erratic stock market and shaky economy, a new fundraising opportunity has emerged ? Life Settlements. Structured Settlements ? Should You Sell Yours? In recent years, it has become more common for victims of accidental injury who accept a settlement from the at-fault party to accept a structured settlement instead of a lump-sum payment. With a structured settlement, the injured party receives payments over an agreed-upon length of time ? five years, ten years, or even a lifetime, rather than receiving payment up front in a lump sum.There are advantages to this for both parties. The injured party may require constant medical care, and the regular payments of a structured settlement guarantee that income will be available to cover the medical expenses. For the paying party, the settlement can be paid by purchasing an annuity, which allows an upfront payment to accrue interest, thereby producing a larger long-term yield from a minimal investment. In many cases, a structured settlement is viewed as a win-win situation for both parties.There are restrictions on structured settlements that may not suit everyone. Once you agree to accept a structured settlement, you cannot trade it back in for a lump sum payment, nor may you use it for collateral for a loan. What if you want to buy a home and pay cash? What if some other unexpected expense comes up and you simply do not have the cash available? Under certain circumstances, you may be able to sell your structured settlement to a third party.There are companies that are interested in purchasing structured settlements for investment purposes. Perhaps one or more of these companies has already contacted you. They will agree to pay you a lump sum, in cash, in exchange for you signing over your future annuity payments to them. Be aware that any party that offers to buy your annuity is interested in doing so for investment purposes. They wish to make money on the transaction, and for them, that profit will be spread over the long time that it takes to receive all of the payments that constitute the settlement. Once you combine the factors of time, interest, inflation, and the buying party's profit, you will find that the offer made to you will seem quite small. The amount you receive will be an amount equal to the present day value of the settlement, minus whatever sum the investors require for their profit on the transaction.You should also know that some states prohibit the sale of structured settlements, that some insurance companies who handle the annuities prohibit sales to a third party, and that you will probably need to go to court to arrange the sale. In addition, there may be tax considerations involved in the sale, and the taxes due on large sums of money are not insignificant. If you are interested in selling your structured settlement, you will definitely want to discuss the sale with an attorney and a tax advisor beforehand.While structured settlements are designed to benefit those who receive them, there are times when it may be desirable or necessary to sell them. If you are considering selling your settlement, make sure that you weigh all of your options carefully. Once you agree to sell, you cannot get it back. What is a Structured Settlement A Structured Settlement is an agreement between a personal injury victim ( a Plaintiff ) and an Insurance company ( the Defendant )to compensate the Plaintiff by the defendant with long term periodicpayments instead of a single cash lump sum. Annuity Transfer - What Are the Risks Many people who know in the back of their minds that they got thepossibility to transform a monthly payment or annuity long termpayments into a big lump sum and by that to relieve sometemporarily financial problems, or need to buy a new car or a houseor help their children and so forth are tempted to exercise thisprocess into action.Although it is a very natural feeling and sometimes even a real lifeneed or deep inner quest for power and control, it is not in their bestfinancial interest to say the least. Should You Sell Your Structured Settlement? The courts have just awarded you a settlement in the amount of $1.3 million dollars for injuries you sustained while using the Widget Corporation's product. However, the terms of the settlement require that Widget pay you a small amount right now, with the remaining funds to be dispersed over the next 20 years. This "structured settlement" works fine for some people, but you have medical bills that need to be paid now. What can you do about it? Answer: you can sell your structured settlement and receive additional cash now. Structured Settlements Are Like Ants Ants are powerful creatures. The powerful ant legs are able to lift 20 times their body weight, and run the equivalent of a man running as fast as a racehorse. Structured Settlements are strong agreements that turn an agreement to pay a plaintiff into an ironclad guaranteed structured award. Individual Voluntary Arrangements. IVA What is an IVA? A Structured Lawsuit Settlement Seemed Like a Good Idea at One Time You are receiving payments spread out over months, years, even a lifetime. It's great when the money arrives but the payments are often too small or too spread out to really satisfy your needs. Careful research could yield more of your cash faster. There are some half dozen financial institutions with the knowledge and resources to effectively advance your future lawsuit payments.While the rewards are obvious, the risks are not so easily understood. Once you identify an annuity buyout funding source, consult your attorney for an explanation of the legal requirements. When Should You Not Cash Out Your Annuity? You should not cash out your annuity when it's not in your best interest.Here are 3 reasons it might not be in your best interest; it's too soon, you don't have a good enough reason, it will cost you too much. Every day someone cashes out their annuity or settlement when it might not have been in their best interest. It's an easy mistake to make when the call of money and burden of financial stress is weighing heavily on you. But read carefully and maybe you can avoid digging the hole deeper. Cash For Structured Settlements - The Smart Way For most people when they buy a house it is considered their life's largest deal. In some cases of structured settlements the compensation and financial considerations for a persons life duration and the total present value of the settlement can reach few millions of dollars. Therefore it is strongly advised to use professional services like annuity consultant and a lawyer specialized in this field in order for you to avoid painful costly mistakes. Here are some tips: Unstructured Settlement Me'Lisa Delaney, 43, is brain-injured as a result of a 1984 medical error that caused a stroke during surgery. The hospital agreed to settle via a structured settlement, as overseen by a county conservatorship. Class Action Lawsuits First of all, let me say that anyone who has been in any way hurt or injured by any other party and settled through a class action lawsuit, disregard this article. I am more interested in the little frivolous lawsuits that award pitiful amounts to offended parties who most likely had no idea they were offended. Structured Settlements Offer Advantages over Lump-Sum Payments A structured settlement, which offers injury victims cash payments through a long-term annuity as compensation for their damages and medical expenses, offer a number of possible advantages over payment in a lump sum. While the lump sum payment is the traditional way for responsible parties to pay accident claims, the structured settlement offers payments over the span of an agreed-upon period of time. This length of time may span from several years up to the remainder of the life of the injured party, depending on the severity of the accident, the amount of money involved, and the agreement reached between the two parties. Depending on the specific circumstances of the case, structured settlements can have numerous advantages over a lump-sum payment: They are tax free. Thanks to a 1982 change in the Federal tax code, payments on a structured settlement are free of state and Federal taxes. The paying party funds the settlement through the purchase of an annuity which earns the interest to fund the continued payments. This is not the case with a lump-sum payment, which the injured party must invest themselves. Any interest earned on those investments are taxable. They are potentially safer. Most people who come into a large sum of money suddenly find that they are quite popular with long-lost relatives, unscrupulous purveyors of investment schemes, and good, old-fashioned thieves. By receiving payments in substantially smaller amounts, the beneficiaries of a structured settlement have far fewer worries about having others take advantage of them, which could leave them both poor and without adequate medical care. They are simply less trouble. It's difficult enough to adjust to changes in your life if you are seriously injured without having to also take the new responsibility of investing and managing a large sum of money. Not only must you invest the money, but you must invest it wisely, knowing that it must continue to fund your living and/or health care expenses. The regular payments of a structured settlement, along with their tax-free status, simplify day to day living considerably.While they are not ideal for everyone, particularly those who are experienced investors or those who need a large sum of money at once for immediate medical expenses or the purchase of a home, structured settlements can offer a simpler, safer payment solution for many people who are victims of an accident or injury.
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