Successful senior life settlements get finalized every day. However, the perfect life settlements investment isn’t going to just fall into your lap. If you want the best senior life settlement possible, you need to understand these 4 things:

1. You have to negotiate

Life settlements are an investment for all sides. You can’t expect an investor to approach you with a great deal right off the bat. Instead, you’ll have to do some back-and-forth negotiating. It’s kind of like buying a new car – only the stakes are much, much higher.

If you’re an older person who’s entering into a senor life settlement, you can command a much higher payout than someone who’s 10 or 20 years younger. After all, your investor is going to get to get a return on his money much sooner in a senior life settlement. If you don’t use your age as leverage in negotiations, you’re making a big mistake!

2. Age isn’t the only factor

Don’t automatically assume that you’re entitled to a senior life settlement because you’ve reached (or haven’t reached) a certain age. Your current health status will have a lot to do with your payout, too. So, if you’re a 65-year-old with cancer, you can command a much higher payout than a 70-year-old in perfect health.

As morbid as it may sound, investors calculate life expectancy when they enter into a senior life settlement.

They try to figure how long they’ll need to pay premiums before you pass on and they can collect your insurance payout. The sooner they can collect their money, the better the deal is for them – meaning they need to pay you more in your payout.

3. You have to think about your heirs

As nice as a $100,000 or $200,000 payout may seem right now, is it enough to give up the rights to your life insurance policy? Before you sign a senior life settlement deal, you have to make sure you’re comfortable with the money you’re getting. Will you be able to pay off your debts with the money, or will you still pass on a bunch of them to your heirs? Are your heirs depending on your full life insurance payout to stay afloat after you’re gone?

4. Life settlements don’t have to be tricky

If you’re nervous about entering into a life settlements investment, don’t be. As long as you educate yourself on the process, you can get a good deal. And, if you want a little help through the process, you can always hire a senior life settlement broker. These people are professional “middlemen” that can help make everything a little easier.