Is it a Good Time to Buy Structured Settlements?

To buy a structured settlement in todays financial climate could be an interesting exercise in financial investing. According to Ben Bernanke, from the US Federal Reserve bank, the future is still far from certain. If you were to buy structured settlements at this point in time you could either make a heap of money or lose your shirt.

The upside to buying this type of investment is if the market does stabilise and you have been able to buy the settlement at a heavily discounted price and the settlement agreement is from a financially secure  institution, then you and your bank manager will be very happy customers.

On the other side, if you buy a structured settlement from a less than financially secure institution, and you paid almost face value price minus interest costs, you could end up minus your shirt and with a very unhappy financial advisor along with a very unhappy bank manager. Not to mention that if you live in the northern hemisphere, you will quickly feel the cold tickling around bare ribs.

Ben Bernanke has been probably one of the most financially influential listened to gurus for a number of years now and if he's advising caution to financial institutions and investors, then why disregard his advice at this point in time? Yes, I do hold him partially responsible for the mess the world's economy is in now but I do think perhaps he isn't all bad and now he is looking for the best way for all of us out of a failed financial system.

If you are seriously considering buying a structured settlement contract at this point in time then you will need to carefully research the financial institution who has issued the contract and do a severe due diligence on their viability.

Don't forget, AIG and Bear Sterns may have been 'too big to fail' but how many times and how many other insurance and financial institutions are the Tax payers around the world prepared to bail out of corporate greedy decisions, especially when today we see in the Guardian Newspaper in the UK that the British Government has had to legislate a special "Bonus Tax" because the banks are still giving their corporate governors multi-millions in bonus payments.

Buying a structured settlement agreement today is still risky business and you need more information available to you rather than just listening to what the hawkers of financial products are 'talking up' around the world.