Whether you’ve sued your employer for a wrongful termination, you got injured in an auto collision that wasn’t your fault or you’ve slipped and fallen while you are out shopping, it is crucial to hold onto your settlement money for as long as you can. Your first impulse will be to spend all of it at once, but the wisest thing you can do is invest it. If you want to make the money last, possibly for a lifetime, you have to look at the funds not as a windfall, but as a nest egg that could secure your financial future.
Here are 5 tips for investing lawsuit settlement money:
Make sure that all your financial records are in tip-top shape. It is important to know how much you should invest and how much you should keep liquid for expenses, like paying off medical bills if you were injured or for bills if you were laid off. While it is smart to invest your settlement winnings, you typically don’t want to go all in, because you can end up not having enough for your immediate expenses. In this case it might be wise to consult with a financial advisor who can better estimate how much you should invest and how much you should hold on to.