A Good Reason Not to Sell Your Structured Settlement in 2009

A Good Reason Not to Sell Your Structured Settlement in 2009

Christmas is upon us once again and this means we all spend money on our credit cards to pay for Christmas presents for our loved ones. If you are considering selling a structured settlement to alleviate some or all of this debt before or just after Christmas, then it could be a very good idea to first do some very serious due diligence on the state of the market for structured settlements.


This time of year is always one of the biggest expenses in a family and it always seems to be the hardest one to curtail. But if you sell your settlement agreement or term life insurance policy to cover all or some of this debt it could be the most expensive Christmas in your history. Why? Because it's a buyers market at this time of the year and because our world economy is still in a state of uncertainty.


If you absolutely, positively must sell your payout agreement or insurance policy then you need to be aware of some facts:


As Ben Bernanke, the Chairman of the US Federal Reserve, took pains to point out in his speech earlier this December 2009, the financial crises is not ended yet despite some of the 'talking up' from financial institutions. Ask yourself why are the banks and financial institutions 'talking up' the economy? Could it be because they are wanting to sell more of their investment products?


I am not advocating remotely that we should all be totally negative about our financial situations but I am advocating for some real honesty out of our Governments, financial institutions, and media. If you were to sell your financial asset under these conditions then you are likely to have very little negotiating power for the best deal you could possibly negotiate and these assets can only be sold once.


With so many other settlement holders also wanting to sell their agreed settlements for similar reasons, it means the finite number of buyers are getting swamped with offers to sell. When there is a plentiful supply of product available the price always goes down and you may need to seriously consider if this is the best market for you to sell your settlement asset in.


If you absolutely positively don't have to sell your structured settlement in 2009 and can wait and see where the financial markets are heading in 2010 you could sell closer to the real value of your settlement agreement.