If you are wondering, “Should I sell my structured settlement payment” to save my house you probably have doubts because you know that your structure serves a purpose. Or maybe life just changed. Maybe you were awarded a structured settlement and having that money coming in each month was a blessing for a few years – you loved it. But now something happened and your circumstances are now such that you feel you would be better served by a lump sum of money. Perhaps you are now disabled to the point that you need a new career and you want to go back to college – selling some payments to pay the tuition might be a great choice. Whatever your situation, if you are reading this it means you need money. And structured settlement buyouts may seem like the perfect solution. But think about it.

It is important to recognize that there are other ways to get money. In fact, some of the more caring factoring companies will even help you. For example, our company, Strategic Capital, once had a disabled woman call wanting money for college; rather than buy her payments we helped her to get a grant to the college she wanted to attend, leaving her settlement intact.

In our online structured settlement guide we talked already about a few scenarios where you might consider selling your settlement, but let’s look at a few more here.

This is a difficult question because, again, it depends upon many factors. Often, medical bills can be paid in installments, with no interest applied. If this is the case then making those installments using your structured settlement payments might be a good idea. However, even famed financial advisor Suze Orman admits that not all financial decisions are based on money alone – people come first. Thus, if the stress of those medical bills hanging over your head is damaging your peace of mind it might be a good choice to sell your payments and pay them off.

Credit card debt in the new millennium is at an all-time high, with many consumers owing tens of thousands of dollars – more than their annual income – in credit card debt. And interest rates are sky high as well; some cards can charge 18%, 20%, even 26% interest – it’s practically criminal, and you may be a victim.

If you have high credit card debt, with high interest rates, and you find that you are making only the minimum payments then selling a structured settlement might make sense to pay off that debt. There is just one warning here – this is only a logical decision if you change your spending habits and never charge those cards up again. Before you pay off your cards, read some financial planning books and make a commitment to yourself never to live off of credit again. Buy only what you can afford, cut up your credit cards, and learn to live on cash alone. If you do that, then paying off your cards is probably a great idea. Can you sell your annuity to pay off credit cards? Sure you can, but consider if it will really help you.

This is a difficult decision that depends on financial circumstances and your heart. There are many ways to pay for college and in many situations allowing your children to take out loans that they can repay later is better than risking your own financial security by selling your settlement for college tuition. However, if you feel that you can make it, financially, without your payments, and if you feel that the tuition will be money well spent, then you might go with your heart and take this plunge.