Don't let windfall sweep you off your feet

Sudden wealth can be a blessing and a curse at the same time, and learning how to handle it can mean the difference between whether you still have that money years later and whether you're right back where you started - or even worse.

"A lot of factors affect how well a person handles receiving sudden wealth," said Lynn Lawrance, a certified financial planner at Financial Network Investment Corp. in Dallas.

"A person's emotional maturity, how they relate to money and whether they work with a financial planner all influence how well a person will handle a sudden windfall."