Which type of contract is designed to liquidate an estate through recurrent payments?

The correct answer is an annuity. Annuities are financial products that are specifically structured to provide a series of payments over time, generally as a way to liquidate an estate or to ensure a steady income stream. They are often used in retirement planning to distribute funds over a specified period, often for the lifetime of the annuitant, which helps manage longevity risk—the risk of outliving one's savings.

In contrast, universal life insurance and whole life insurance are types of life insurance policies that are primarily designed to provide a death benefit to beneficiaries upon the policyholder's death, instead of recurrent payments as a method for estate liquidation. While they might eventually result in a payout, their primary function is insurance coverage rather than providing an income stream.

A 401k is a retirement savings plan that allows workers to save and invest a piece of their paycheck before taxes are taken out. While a 401k can provide funds in retirement, it is not specifically designed to liquidate an estate through recurrent payments, unlike an annuity, which is explicitly structured for regular payouts.

Thus, an annuity is the product designed to liquidate an estate through recurrent payments, making it the best choice among the options provided.