Thousands of Americans collect long term payments from Structured Settlements, Personal Injury, Annuities, Lottery Winnings, and Seller Held Mortgages. Many more are finding that these incremental payments have seemingly shrunk in today's inflated economy.
Jeremy Boydd bought his home in 2002 after winning a small fortune in a state lottery. He was not disabled from an accident, he just got lucky. He used a large lump sum to purchase the home, and decided that his monthly payments would be directly paid to his mortgage note. Smart thinking some would say. Jeremy also took advantage of the immediate capital from his initial large payment and started a small business.
The money he invested in this entrepreneurship was not entirely a bad choice.
However Structured Sober Living, without the experience of owning and operating his own business, he quickly learned that the financial management of a hopefully growing enterprise required extensive planning and foresight that he did not possess.
The first two years were a success. Jeremy soon found himself in a position to purchase a larger lot, with a self standing structure already in place. Not quite new, but gently worn in. Small and minor repairs would have the office ready to take on staff and house a larger inventory.
Again, not entirely a bad business decision Structured Sober Living
However, not realizing what and how much his total inventory and investment were worth, Jeremy did not have adequate insurance to cover damages from a renegade fire from the thick and dry foliage growing behind the building. Experience might have led him to create a larger easement, preventing the spread of the flames. Or, it may have been spread by the gust and winds that day in either case.
After firefighters extinguished the flames, anything not destroyed by fire was certainly rendered obsolete by the saturation of water and chemical flame retardant used to expel the angry heat. Facing a half a million dollar deductible he could not afford, Jeremy was unable to recover his losses, and although his payments saw to it that his mortgage was paid. His investment, business, and job were gone. It all went up in smoke as they say.
Some people argue that Jeremy had a beautiful home and his mortgage was paid, it would not be difficult to recover from the incident. Well, they could not have been further from reality in their thinking. What neighbors and friends, as well as family forgot, was the lifestyle and additional expenses this business brought with it.
Revenue from the small and growing business afforded Jeremy two new cars complete with insurance and car payments. He had financed office equipment for the home, and several additional improvements such as a pool, and additional floor to the existing home. Increased size of his living space also increased his monthly housing expenses.
With all these needs and financing met by a salary derived from his now deceased business, Jeremy found it increasingly hard to keep on top of bills, and payments. Stress from financial worries and burdens inevitably gave way to the demise of his marriage of nearly 14 years. Private school tuition for their young son was also not an item of luxury they would continue to be able to afford.
Jeremy sought help from the banks, urging and pleading with them to give him more time, to allow him extensions, based on the new job he had taken as an inventory control supervisor, but the banks would not budge. Jeremy's wages were not sufficient to cover and maintain this affluent lifestyle any longer. Having gone from blue collar worker to small business owner, Jeremy never envisioned that having a degree would cast him out from so many possible job opportunities.
Their mid-size town had grown in just a few short years to a bustling little city with hopeful and well qualified college graduates applying in record numbers for new jobs. His wife Linda, worked odd jobs babysitting, cleaning homes, and even walking other neighbors pets. Nothing seemed to get better, and the severity of their worsening financial snowball got larger with every day, week, and month that went by.
Jeremy also turned to his lottery winnings. Thinking if he gave the proper documents, and showed sufficient need to the insurance company responsible for paying out his winnings, he would be able to access his future monies to help alleviate and restore not only his diminishing credit score, but virtually his entire life.