Archive for September, 2009

Tips for Annuity Buyers

Annuity Information and Tips For Prospective Buyers.

If you are planning to purchase an annuity, take the time to understand the details, restrictions and add-ons involved. If you decide wisely, annuities can make a positive contribution to your portfolio of investments.

Critical annuity factors include:

•    Fees. Evaluate if the yearly fees imposed on annuity plan are worth the benefits you’ll get and determine if the plan imposes “surrender fees” if you decide to make an early withdrawal.

•    Return rates. Make certain that the return rate promised by the insurance company selling the annuity is actually the rate you will receive. Confirm the timeframe during which the rate will apply.

•    Tax advantages

•    Inflation. The value of an annuity may decrease as a result of inflation. You may be given the option to purchase inflation protection for your plan, which could be worth the added fee.

•    Contract terms. Meet with an independent financial adviser before you buy an annuity contract. These contracts can be very complicated.

Categories: Annuity Payments, Blog, Woodbridge Investments LLC, lump sum payments.

Selling Annuities – Benefits of Annuity Investments

What Are Some Benefits of Annuity Investments

An annuity is an investment option that offers an insurance component to individual investors. Annuity investments get their name because the investor has the ability to convert their investment into a set of periodic income payments either over the investor’s life or over a set number of years.

There are many reasons why many investors chose selling annuities to fund their retirements and other long-term investment goals (such as paying for the college tuition of their dependents.)

Reasons To Choose Annuity Investments

1.    Income guaranteed. No matter how long you live, an annuity can supply you lifetime income. This is the only investment vehicle that can provide this.

2.    Contributions are unlimited. With an annuity you have no limits to how much money you can invest over the year. You also can opt to invest funds in one lump sum or in installments to better suit your needs.

3.    Bonus rates. Some annuities will offer bonuses, for instance, extra interest to help boost the annuity’s principal.

4.    No loss risk. Annuities’ performance is based on the the stock market treatment of mutual funds. The performance is at limited risk, unlike stocks.

5.    No probate. Your assigned beneficiaries will have no trouble receiving the funds of your annuity upon your death. No probate is necessary provided you have specified your beneficiaries.

6.    Shelter earnings. Most investments can cause taxation of Social Security benefits. However, with annuities you can shelter your investment earnings.

7.    Tax advantages

Categories: Annuity Payments, Blog, Woodbridge Investments LLC.

Should You Cash Out Your Structured Settlement For a Lump Sum?

Why Should I Cash Out My Structured Settlement For A Lump Sum Payment?

More often than not, when people are awarded compensation for accidental injury or wrongful death from their insurance companies, they choose to receive a series of payments over a longer span of time instead of an immediate lump sum of cash. These structured settlement payments usually total more than the amount one would have received at settlement. In order to opt for a settlement structured in this manner, the plaintiff must sign a settlement and release agreement that permits the defendant to buy an annuity policy to provide for the payments to the annuitant. The annuitant does not own the annuity nor does he have the right to sell it. He does have the right though to sell structured settlement payments to a third party.

Is a Lump Sum Payment Necessary For You?

The specific reasons plaintiffs have for selling structured settlement payments may vary but it all boils down to some kind of change in their financial situation. During the time the structured settlement was made, the scheme fitted the annuitant’s needs. Over time, financial hardships may strike or investing opportunities may come knocking that necessitate the possession of a large sum of cash now instead of staggered payments.

Categories: Blog, Cash Structured Settlements, Sell Personal Injury Settlements, Sell Structured Settlement Payments, Structured Settlements, Woodbridge Investments LLC.

Structured Settlement Factoring versus Structured Settlement Creation

Structured Settlement Factoring versus Structured Settlement

Ever wonder why settlement brokers and settlement factors seem to dislike each other?
A settlement broker’s work involves structuring a large settlement to be paid over time via annuity to their client. What a settlement factor does is the reverse: if the client needs a large sum of money for an emergency, a factor helps convert part or all of the structured settlement into a lump sum.

Some Possible Reasons of Conflict between Structured Settlement Creationists and Factors

At first glance it seems that creationists and factors have more or less the same goal of helping clients receive their settlement. So what’s the source of the conflict? Here are a few possibilities:

• Settlement creationists take it personally when their work is replaced by factoring. After all, how would you like it if someone undid the job you worked so hard on?

• Settlement creationist thinks factors charge too much and thus make more money.

• Settlement factors dominate the search engine results for “structured settlement.”

• Settlement factors benefit from the work of structured settlement consultants whereas settlement creationists do not.

• Settlement brokers have been around longer and have more certifications, accreditation and titles. Maybe they feel superior to factors.

Similarities between Structured Settlement Factors and Creationists

For every difference between the two groups, there also exists a similarity. Both settlement creationists and settlement factors:

• work for profit,

• follow state and federal guidelines,

• provide a service associated with structured settlement,

• and have associates with high integrity and others with less integrity…

The reality is that though both businesses may not get along, they provide services that help people in their financial need. It’s not important that they agree or like each other, but they must never let those feelings compromise professionalism.

Categories: Articles, Buyer of Structured Settlement Payment, Sell Structured Settlement Payments, Structured Settlements, Woodbridge Investments LLC.

What Is a Fixed Annuity?

What Is A Fixed Annuity?

A fixed annuity is an insurance contract in which the issuing company promises to make fixed dollar payments to the contract holder (or annuitant) for a pre-determined period of time. The issuing company also guarantees both the earnings on the account and the principal balance in return for payment of the contract premium.

Most annuities are written contracts issued by life insurance companies. In exchange for payments of the contract premiums, the annuitant can count on regularly scheduled payments.

What Is The Difference Between Purchasing an Annuity With Buying Life Insurance?

Some people confuse purchasing an annuity with buying life insurance. Neither is an annuity a savings account. An annuity is normally used to provide long-term retirement income. And since the annuitant is promised both earnings and principal, the investment is as secure as the financial strength of the insurance company.

Annuities are considered very safe investments because payments received are unaffected by the volatility of the stock market. They also employ a simple and straightforward process – upon paying premiums, annuitants simply waits for the scheduled payments. The security and straightforwardness of annuities make it easier for contract holders to plan their retirement.

Categories: Annuity Payments, Blog, Woodbridge Investments LLC.

The Pros and Cons of Selling a Structured Settlement for a Lump Sum

The sale of a structured settlements has its advantages and disadvantages.

The option to sell structured settlements for cash must not be taken lightly. These periodic payments could be funds you have become dependent on to some extent, and selling will stop those payments. But if you need a large amount of cash to fund an investment that will change your life for the better, selling all or part of your structured settlement may be more useful to you than hanging on to the periodic payments.

So before selling a structured settlement, weigh the transaction’s pros against its cons first to make sure that what you’re losing is expendable when compared to what you’re gaining.

ADVANTAGES:

• Liquidity. A structured settlement limits the liquidity of the settlement money that you are entitled to, whereas cashing in a portion or all of a structured settlement frees that money for immediate use.

• Value. You can capture the current value of the money that you’re owed. Because structured settlement payments are equal each month, the effects of inflation decrease the real value of your money over time.

• You don’t have to wait for credit approval. Although you may need to validate your reasoning for cashing a structured settlement, you can’t be denied your settlement because of a bad reference or credit history.

• Relatively quick payment. Compared to applying for a loan, structured settlement factoring is a faster way to get cash, taking as little as three weeks.

DISADVANTAGES:

• Structured settlements and annuities are sold at a discount, which means that the lump sum you get through the sale is less than what you would have received had you continued to accept periodic payments.

• Low regulatory involvement. Structured settlement buyers belong to an industry that is currently unregulated. Unscrupulous companies and individuals exploit this fact by engaging in unethical business practices.

• Taxes. You’ll be charged an excise tax that can be as high as 40% if you choose to cash a settlement for an invalid reason. You will also incur liability for state and federal taxes on your lump sum.

• Legal aspects. Structured settlement factoring is a long process that has exhausted many people who have tried it. There is a lot of red tape to pass through before the money will be seen, and some settlements legally cannot be sold.

Categories: Articles, Buyer of Structured Settlement Payment, Sell Structured Settlement Payments, Woodbridge Investments LLC.

Structured Settlements in Cases of Serious Injury Victims

Structured Settlements Help Serious Injury Victims

For nearly 25 years, the federal government has encouraged the general public to use structured settlements in serious injury cases. Structured settlements have also gained the favor of plaintiff attorneys, state attorneys general, legislators, judges, and disability advocates.Before 1982, serious injury victims were awarded damages in the form of a single lump sum. This form of payment, especially in catastrophic injury cases, often put the injury victim and his family in a financial bind. With the victim unaccustomed to managing such large sums of money, there was the ever present danger of unwise financial decisions.

The Periodic Payment Settlement Act; Helping Protect Injury Victims with Mismanaging Lump Sum Payments

Such decisions can spell disasters like the premature loss of funds before the victim’s medical treatment completed. These bad judgment calls also risk putting lump sum recipients on public assistance. To address these concerns, a bipartisan coalition of legislators in Congress took action to amend the federal tax code. Thus, the Periodic Payment Settlement Act of 1982 (Public Law 97-473) came to be. The Act formally recognized and encouraged the use of structured settlements in serious injury cases so that injury victims could be protected from maladjustment to sudden wealth.

Categories: Blog, Sell Personal Injury Settlements, Sell Structured Settlement Payments, Structured Settlements, Woodbridge Investments LLC, lump sum payments.

How to Improve Your Chances of Winning the Lottery

Increase Your Chances of Lottery Winnings!

While there is still no way to accurately predict winning numbers, there are ways to improve your chances of winning the lottery by analyzing mathematical probabilities and trends.

Here Are Some very Helpful Lottery Winning Tips

• Try to choose numbers that are unlikely to be picked by other people. That way, if you win the lottery, odds are you won’t have to share the prize.

• Avoid the numbers 7 and 11. Most people believe them to be lucky numbers and are almost always picked.

• Avoid numbers 1 through 31. These numbers represent the days in a month and are also popular picks.

• One way of improving your chances of winning the lottery is by using the potential of probability. Combining a balanced mix of odd and even numbers can bring you closer to winning the next lottery game. Winning combinations made up of purely odd or even numbers are extremely rare.

• Calculate your chances of winning. For example, if the odds of winning are one to six million and the jackpot is $30M, buying a lottery ticket is a reasonable enough gamble even though you might not win.

Categories: Blog, Lottery Payments, Woodbridge Investments LLC, lump sum payments.

How Selling Annuities Work

Before You Sell That Annuity, Here is How it Works..

The annuity seller usually gives an application and offer letter to a broker or buyer, and in exchange receives the broker or buyer’s best offer. At this point, a practical seller should compare the offers of various brokers.

Brokers and Selling Your Annuity

Some brokers pursue competitive offers from many funding sources that result in fair and desirable prices to their sellers. Other brokers on the other hand have exclusive relationships with a single funding source, reducing competition and lowering the price the brokerage can offer the seller. If you are thinking of selling your annuity payments, you should make sure that the broker you choose is certified.

Many brokers offer a rapid turn-around time. Much of the process depends on local laws, as well as the willingness of the seller’s insurance company to participate in the sale. Legal hassles on the part of the insurance company may delay the sale, but usually the seller can overcome these obstacles with little difficulty.

“How Long Does It Take To Sell My Annuity?”

Sales are normally concluded within 4 to 16 weeks. Most people getting lump sum cash for future annuity payments receive their funds within eight weeks.

The processes involved in the sale of annuity payments vary in accordance to individual circumstances as well as state laws. However, regardless of these differences in individual cases, the seller is always protected from risks, costs, and taxes.

Categories: Annuity Payments, Blog, Woodbridge Investments LLC, lump sum payments.