Powerball - $510 million?

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F150HD
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Powerball - $510 million?

Post by F150HD »

With all the disciplined investors here, am wondering how many buy Powerball tickets when the prize gets this big?

I picked up one today for $2.

Saturday’s jackpot....has grown to an estimated $510 million, making it the fifth-largest ever offered in the game and ranking it eighth among the biggest lottery prizes in North America.

A ticket matching the five numbers and the Powerball in Saturday’s drawing would generate a $324.2 million lump-sum payout for a single winner who chose that option over the annuity.


Also, would you take lump sum or the annuity if you won Saturday?

(yes, I did see a thread on that here)
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S&L1940
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by S&L1940 »

F150HD wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:42 pm With all the disciplined investors here, am wondering how many buy Powerball tickets when the prize gets this big?

I picked up one today for $2.

Saturday’s jackpot....has grown to an estimated $510 million, making it the fifth-largest ever offered in the game and ranking it eighth among the biggest lottery prizes in North America.

A ticket matching the five numbers and the Powerball in Saturday’s drawing would generate a $324.2 million lump-sum payout for a single winner who chose that option over the annuity.


Also, would you take lump sum or the annuity if you won Saturday?

(yes, I did see a thread on that here)
I focus my lottery ticket buying in the small cap range.
Strangely, I find that winning say 5-15 million would be easier to handle
$342 million, $510 million, I hate complexity...
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MJW
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by MJW »

F150HD wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:42 pm A ticket matching the five numbers and the Powerball in Saturday’s drawing would generate a $324.2 million lump-sum payout for a single winner who chose that option over the annuity.[/i]
I guess if we see a thread on Bogleheads titled "How should I invest my $324.2 million?" we'll know what happened.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by whodidntante »

It would need to get a lot bigger to have a positive expectation. And then the bogleheads should pool their resources. :happy
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Raymond
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Raymond »

Lump sum.

If permitted by the lottery rules and your state, claim it anonymously, or with a trust.

If you're not already in an area with a lot of high-net-worth individuals, move to one - what's another millionaire in an area full of them?

Here's a 2012 thread about a lottery winner.
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S&L1940
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by S&L1940 »

whodidntante wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 12:07 am It would need to get a lot bigger to have a positive expectation. And then the bogleheads should pool their resources. :happy
worked at an office that pooled $5 apiece every week to play power ball
I sent out a memo offering to cover their bets @ $4 each with the same payback they were now getting (zero $s) for a nominal management fee. They would have saved $1 each week and I could have retired long ago on the expense ratio fees - lowest in the lottery industry...
Don't it always seem to go * That you don't know what you've got * Till it's gone
Goal33
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Goal33 »

I am regret adverse, so I threw in 40 bucks along with 19 other people at work.
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Lucky Lemon
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Lucky Lemon »

MJW wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 12:02 am
F150HD wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:42 pm A ticket matching the five numbers and the Powerball in Saturday’s drawing would generate a $324.2 million lump-sum payout for a single winner who chose that option over the annuity.[/i]
I guess if we see a thread on Bogleheads titled "How should I invest my $324.2 million?" we'll know what happened.
So.... I have 324 million. Can I retire?

I will buy a ticket or two and take the lump-sum.

ETA: My likely actions.
Last edited by Lucky Lemon on Fri Aug 18, 2017 1:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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celia
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by celia »

I was at a company where employees put in $10 for a share of the group winnings. Back then, I thought that was pretty steep, so I started another pool where you only had to contribute a quarter or a dollar (I forget). No-one wanted to be left out in case the "poor man's pool" won and the big one didn't, so I got the same participants to chip in again plus some new folks.

I can honestly say that neither one had a winner.

BUT, if there had been a winner, the company would probably have taken a big financial hit with its west coast branch (40-50 people) losing most of its employees.

My philosophy of pools like this:
If you don't buy buy a ticket, it is impossible to win. But if it is meant for you to win, you only need to buy one ticket.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by selters »

How high would the grand prize have to be for the expected return of the lottery ticket to be positive?
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slayed
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by slayed »

The jackpots only get this big one or two times a year so I buy a ticket even though I know it is -EV :P
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by iamlucky13 »

celia wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 1:09 amMy philosophy of pools like this:
If you don't buy buy a ticket, it is impossible to win. But if it is meant for you to win, you only need to buy one ticket.
That depends on your definition of winning, I suppose. I've won a dollar more than you on every ticket you've bought. :wink:
tim1999
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by tim1999 »

I probably buy maybe 20 lotto tickets per year, one at a time, anytime MegaMillions or Powerball gets over $300 million or so.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by oldcomputerguy »

Maybe it's just the exposure to the Boglehead way, but when I think about winning that much money in the Powerball, the first thing that comes to mind is: what would it do to my tax picture? :mrgreen: :moneybag

The second thing, more seriously, is: how much danger would DW and the rest of my family be in when the world found out I was worth $XXXm dollars?

The publicity from hitting the jackpot would likely change my life (and me, unfortunately) in not-so-desirable ways. While I could certainly find acceptable investment options for lesser amounts, I think that this much money all at once would be a cure worse than the disease.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Seasonal »

selters wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 1:21 am How high would the grand prize have to be for the expected return of the lottery ticket to be positive?
Calculations tend to assume there will only be one winning ticket, but large jackpots attract more players, increasing the chances of multiple winners and decreasing the expected return per ticket.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by rec7 »

oldcomputerguy wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:57 am Maybe it's just the exposure to the Boglehead way, but when I think about winning that much money in the Powerball, the first thing that comes to mind is: what would it do to my tax picture? :mrgreen: :moneybag

The second thing, more seriously, is: how much danger would DW and the rest of my family be in when the world found out I was worth $XXXm dollars?

The publicity from hitting the jackpot would likely change my life (and me, unfortunately) in not-so-desirable ways. While I could certainly find acceptable investment options for lesser amounts, I think that this much money all at once would be a cure worse than the disease.
Very true. In most states you must go public. I think it would cause a person to be moving all the time.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by jlcnuke »

I spend $312 on lottery tickets every year as a matter of course ($1 for each Mega Millions drawing and $2 for each Powerball drawing). On big jackpots, I might toss another $20 or so at them for the heck of it.

Of course, I took $2,500 to Vegas with me too so I don't have any problem "throwing away" some money gambling.

At the very worst, I lose all of the money I spent on the lottery while getting to legitimately daydream about winning (daydreaming about winning when you have a ticket is a lot more enjoyable than a thought exercise about what you'd do if someone gave you the money to me).

Cash option is the 100% obvious answer for anyone with discipline. Not to mention, it allows for a lot more ability to make sure some of your friends can also comfortably stop working (which would be nice, so that you'd have more than just family to go do stuff with). Though that's not something I'd consider with one of the "small" jackpots. But at the current level, some friends are retiring too.

Here there is no option to claim anonymously unfortunately, so a new phone/facebook acct/etc would likely be needed.

With the $324.2M cash option, I'd get about $176.3M after paying federal and state taxes (39.6% fed and 6% state). With that, I'd give $7M each to my immediate family and one really good friend (bye $30M), $3M each to 4 of my close friends who aren't retired military (don't have that monthly check, Tricare, etc), and $1-3M each to my retired friends (depending on a couple factors). Some friends who aren't very close would get a pretty decent check too. Then ~$12M to charities would still leave me with around $75M with a jackpot this size. From that, I'd spend upwards of $5M buying my dream home and a nice vacation home in/near the keys, a couple boats, motorcycles and some cars (not to mention furnishing the homes). Finally leaving about $70M with which to "get by" for the rest of my life. Pulling off a 3% SWR from that I'd have $175k/month to spend (before taxes) which I imaging would necessitate a bunch of charitable giving throughout the year to do so (even taking regular vacations and probably private jets lol).
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by MrNewEngland »

It's absolutely worth $2 to me to daydream for a few days about what I'd do with this that kind of money.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by staybalanced »

S&L1940 wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:51 pm
F150HD wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:42 pm With all the disciplined investors here, am wondering how many buy Powerball tickets when the prize gets this big?

I picked up one today for $2.

Saturday’s jackpot....has grown to an estimated $510 million, making it the fifth-largest ever offered in the game and ranking it eighth among the biggest lottery prizes in North America.

A ticket matching the five numbers and the Powerball in Saturday’s drawing would generate a $324.2 million lump-sum payout for a single winner who chose that option over the annuity.


Also, would you take lump sum or the annuity if you won Saturday?

(yes, I did see a thread on that here)
I focus my lottery ticket buying in the small cap range.
Strangely, I find that winning say 5-15 million would be easier to handle
$342 million, $510 million, I hate complexity...

I have been saying this exact thing for years, some in my family look at me like i'm crazy. I don't play though, maybe buy 1 ticket per year.
TravelforFun
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by TravelforFun »

Good luck to all who buy tickets. I don't so you're not getting my money. :D
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Jack FFR1846 »

I don't contribute to voluntary taxes.

The chance to win is approximately the same as walking down the street in front of MIT and being struck by lightning and then being bitten by a shark who has your exact first and last name.

The best way to double my money is to fold it in half and put it back in my wallet.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by F150HD »

selters wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 1:21 am How high would the grand prize have to be for the expected return of the lottery ticket to be positive?
We did the math to see if it's worth buying a ticket for the $430 million Powerball jackpot - Aug. 16, 2017

This was the expected value on Wed before no one won

Image
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F150HD
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by F150HD »

Jack FFR1846 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 7:07 am The chance to win is approximately the same as...being bitten by a shark who has your exact first and last name.
Changing my name to Kevin O'Leary today to increase my chance of winning.

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Accrual
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Accrual »

Normally do not play but will most likely pick up a ticket for Saturday's drawing.

My father was in an office pool a few years back that won $$$ by getting 5/6 numbers correct. One woman who normally contributed to the pool did not contribute that week. :oops: Fortunately for her, the group was understanding enough to allow her to contribute after the fact and thus enabled her to receive some of the winnings.

Got to be in the game if you want a shot at winning!
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by lazydavid »

F150HD wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 7:29 am
selters wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 1:21 am How high would the grand prize have to be for the expected return of the lottery ticket to be positive?
We did the math to see if it's worth buying a ticket for the $430 million Powerball jackpot - Aug. 16, 2017

This was the expected value on Wed before no one won
To be fair though, that's the "rainbows and unicorns" picture. It assumes:

1. There is only one grand prize winner
2. The Present value of a $430M annuity is $430M in today's dollars
3. Winnings are tax exempt

If you leave the assumption of a single winner (because I don't know how to figure the probability of multiple winners), but take the ACTUAL lump sum instead of the magically-equal-value one, and have to pay taxes on that amount, here's what it REALLY looked like:

Image
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by WiscoTrout »

oldcomputerguy wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:57 am The publicity from hitting the jackpot would likely change my life (and me, unfortunately) in not-so-desirable ways. While I could certainly find acceptable investment options for lesser amounts, I think that this much money all at once would be a cure worse than the disease.
This is exactly why I won't part with my $2 to buy a ticket. I've worked hard to get to a position of FI where lack of money is not a driving factor in my life. Why would I take the infinitesimal chance of throwing that all away for the opposite problem?
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by rec7 »

Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by madmartigan »

I would participate in a reasonably priced group work pool, but that's only to hedge the risk that they would win and I'd be left continuing to work. I'm not sure I could live with my haughty (yet correct) attitude towards the lottery as I'm watching coworkers put in their resignation notices and jetting off to Tahiti. But that's the only exception. The lottery has a horrible vig which I'd rather spend gambling elsewhere.

That said, I think a lot of people spend that money the same as they would watching a movie from Redbox. It's a small sum which you can often derive a lot of entertainment value chatting about the "what ifs" with coworkers and friends.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by vectorizer »

Funny to see this thread this morning ... I have in front of me 4 just-found Powerball tickets from 2016, so they've expired. I am proud to have resisted the temptation to lookup the numbers. So, no, I absolutely will not be buying a ticket for Saturday. :-)
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by jlcnuke »

rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
rec7
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by rec7 »

jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:38 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
I read stories about people knocking on your front door all the time. I would guess these people would also follow you to store to talk to you there.
What do you do about that?
Disclaimer: You might lose money doing anything I say. Although that was not my intent. | Favorite song: Sometimes He Whispers Jay Parrack
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by jlcnuke »

rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:45 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:38 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
I read stories about people knocking on your front door all the time. I would guess these people would also follow you to store to talk to you there.
What do you do about that?
Be polite at first, then be blunt/rude if they won't take the hint. It'll slow down/die off over time. There's a show about people who won the lottery that was on for a while (I think it's still on, seen it at my folk's but could have been re-runs). None of them seem to have any such "stalking" problems after a while. Maybe spend a bunch of the early time "out of the area" (a few month vacation while the new house gets built sounds like a good idea). I'm guessing that most people back off quickly since it doesn't seem to be something they even mention on that show.

I volunteer to win the Powerball jackpot so I can experience it and provide a detailed account of how to handle such problems however :D
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by gtg970g »

I play when the jackpots get huge, once or twice a year. Won $50 on last weeks Mega Millions by matching 4 numbers so I'm ahead in lifetime earnings.

I select numbers all above 31 to increase odds of not sharing the prize. Many people select dates so the numbers under 31 are more likely to have duplicate ticket sales.
Last edited by gtg970g on Fri Aug 18, 2017 9:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by lthenderson »

MrNewEngland wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 6:39 am It's absolutely worth $2 to me to daydream for a few days about what I'd do with this that kind of money.
This is why I buy the occasional lottery ticket.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by sunny_socal »

oldcomputerguy wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:57 am Maybe it's just the exposure to the Boglehead way, but when I think about winning that much money in the Powerball, the first thing that comes to mind is: what would it do to my tax picture? :mrgreen: :moneybag

The second thing, more seriously, is: how much danger would DW and the rest of my family be in when the world found out I was worth $XXXm dollars?

The publicity from hitting the jackpot would likely change my life (and me, unfortunately) in not-so-desirable ways. While I could certainly find acceptable investment options for lesser amounts, I think that this much money all at once would be a cure worse than the disease.
This is my worry as well. I would definitely want to claim the prize anonymously.

Can this be done in California? Officially I don't think it's possible since they want your name but this site suggests one could set up a Trust in another state and then have your lawyer claim the prize on your behalf:
https://www.lotterypost.com/thread/225653
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Nate79 »

rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Buy the town? :)
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Texanbybirth »

I'd like to think we'd just give away most of it. I can't even fathom what I'd personally do with all that money, and I can only imagine the terrible effect it would have on my relationships.

I like the person above who said he has "regret envy". I'm the same, so I'll buy a ticket to join the herd.
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rec7
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by rec7 »

jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:56 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:45 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:38 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
I read stories about people knocking on your front door all the time. I would guess these people would also follow you to store to talk to you there.
What do you do about that?
Be polite at first, then be blunt/rude if they won't take the hint. It'll slow down/die off over time. There's a show about people who won the lottery that was on for a while (I think it's still on, seen it at my folk's but could have been re-runs). None of them seem to have any such "stalking" problems after a while. Maybe spend a bunch of the early time "out of the area" (a few month vacation while the new house gets built sounds like a good idea). I'm guessing that most people back off quickly since it doesn't seem to be something they even mention on that show.

I volunteer to win the Powerball jackpot so I can experience it and provide a detailed account of how to handle such problems however :D
Good point but I am guessing few if any live in the house they won the prize in.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by CppCoder »

I wait until it clears $1 billion. Anything below that is just chump change and not worth the drive to the grocery store. :)
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by jlcnuke »

rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 9:35 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:56 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:45 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:38 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:22 am Question for all the folks that what to win. How do you keep you privacy at home or around town? To me it seems like people would bug you constantly.
Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
I read stories about people knocking on your front door all the time. I would guess these people would also follow you to store to talk to you there.
What do you do about that?
Be polite at first, then be blunt/rude if they won't take the hint. It'll slow down/die off over time. There's a show about people who won the lottery that was on for a while (I think it's still on, seen it at my folk's but could have been re-runs). None of them seem to have any such "stalking" problems after a while. Maybe spend a bunch of the early time "out of the area" (a few month vacation while the new house gets built sounds like a good idea). I'm guessing that most people back off quickly since it doesn't seem to be something they even mention on that show.

I volunteer to win the Powerball jackpot so I can experience it and provide a detailed account of how to handle such problems however :D
Good point but I am guessing few if any live in the house they won the prize in.
One of the very first things I'd do would be to design and have built my new house... I imagine the overwhelming majority of people who come into a massive fortune would like to have their (now very affordable) dream home as well.
jlcnuke
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by jlcnuke »

CppCoder wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 9:36 am I wait until it clears $1 billion. Anything below that is just chump change and not worth the drive to the grocery store. :)
Grocery store? I buy my tickets online... :)
rec7
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by rec7 »

jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 9:39 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 9:35 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:56 am
rec7 wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:45 am
jlcnuke wrote: Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:38 am

Change phone #, emails, and set appropriate restrictions on privacy for social media would be the most important. Outside of that, most of the "to do" about any new "rich" person in a moderate-to-large town would disappear relatively quickly it would seem. Outside of family/friends that have "gimme gimme" problems, most lottery winners don't seem to have their lives really jacked up unless they do something stupid (like the guy who kept going to the same strip club loaded down with thousands in cash or something). Being "outed" as a millionaire doesn't ruin people's lives long-term, though there'd definitely be some "help me out buddy" type things for a new winner I'd imagine. Learning to say "no" would be the hardest thing for some people (I'm pretty good at it already though, but I'd be happy to have the chance to practice it after winning lol).
I read stories about people knocking on your front door all the time. I would guess these people would also follow you to store to talk to you there.
What do you do about that?
Be polite at first, then be blunt/rude if they won't take the hint. It'll slow down/die off over time. There's a show about people who won the lottery that was on for a while (I think it's still on, seen it at my folk's but could have been re-runs). None of them seem to have any such "stalking" problems after a while. Maybe spend a bunch of the early time "out of the area" (a few month vacation while the new house gets built sounds like a good idea). I'm guessing that most people back off quickly since it doesn't seem to be something they even mention on that show.

I volunteer to win the Powerball jackpot so I can experience it and provide a detailed account of how to handle such problems however :D
Good point but I am guessing few if any live in the house they won the prize in.
One of the very first things I'd do would be to design and have built my new house... I imagine the overwhelming majority of people who come into a massive fortune would like to have their (now very affordable) dream home as well.
Good point. I live in a mid sized house but love where I live. I think I would be forced out by winning the lotto. All these people who think they can stay in their current house and their live will be the same are wrong. I notice some try to keep working but that does not work. People come to the work place bugging them at work to the point they have to leave the job.
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Grt2bOutdoors
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/other/drama ... 8C11251444

The other thing - keep your mouth shut, if you must appear in public, say nothing, zero. Hire an attorney to represent you and say as little as absolutely possible. Use a trust to hold the money, obtain a very large umbrella policy. Keep your lifestyle the same - you know who your friends are - the same ones you've been talking to over the last week, month, years. If you haven't seen them in 30 years and they suddenly show up - you know what they are not. Develop a thick skin - you'll have all kinds of words thrown at you, some may not be nice at all and some may be from your real friends and family - don't say it doesn't happen, envy can be real. Be more than happy to hire off duty local police to guard my home to keep trespassers away.
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S&L1940
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by S&L1940 »

did not read all the posts
would your chances of winning be higher in the low prize weeks since fewer people would be buying tons of combinations?
hate to split $400 million between 10-12 people...
rather rake in the whole $5 million as a single (anonymous) winner :greedy
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S&L1940
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by S&L1940 »

Also, love the winners who get quoted saying they will go to work tomorrow and be their same delightful selves.
Had I miraculously won (despite the fact I do not buy any lottery tickets), I would have instantly stopped working - mid whatever - walked out the door and lived under the radar at some beach community. As I do now in my real retirement yet closer than where I am now, 4 miles from the beach!
Don't it always seem to go * That you don't know what you've got * Till it's gone
theplayer11
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by theplayer11 »

I find it amusing how so many won't bother to buy a ticket when the jackpot is say $60-70M, but the stores have lines around the corner when it reaches such a huge amount.
Personally, I've never bought a ticket and never will..winning would ruin my life and probably my children's.
Boglegrappler
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Boglegrappler »

You always should take the lump sum. I don't believe lottery annuities are full faith and credit of the states and even if they were, its better not to depend on entities where they could decide to, or have to, default.

Buying tickets makes decent sense to me, in moderation. I had a finance prof who tried to take the position that it was an irrational act to buy a ticket, based on the fact that it has a negative expected value. But that same argument applies to insurance. My view is that its quite rational because it gives you a tiny bit of exposure to a very positive event. Without a ticket you don't have it. Good luck to everyone.
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by michaeljc70 »

I don't buy lottery tickets. How much money does Powerball and all the state lotteries take in in a year? A couple of years ago it was over $70B. Think if people saved/invested all that money. I don't really have a problem with someone buying a ticket here and there for fun though. I think a lot of people (particularly lower income) are spending money that they really could be using more wisely though.
nimo956
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by nimo956 »

I have a practical question that I never see discussed. What do you have to do tax-wise after winning? Will the lottery use your prior year tax return to estimate your tax liability and then withhold that amount, or would you have to make estimated payments? What would be different on your 1040?

Side note: I once calculated how large the lump sum would need to be such that a single ticket purchase would have a positive expected return. After taking taxes into account (but not multiple winners), I think the lump sum needed to be at least 1.5B (which means the jackpot needs to be much higher)!
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Earl Lemongrab
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Re: Powerball - $510 million?

Post by Earl Lemongrab »

F150HD wrote: Thu Aug 17, 2017 11:42 pm With all the disciplined investors here, am wondering how many buy Powerball tickets when the prize gets this big?
I guess I don't understand the reasoning. When it's 100 million that's chump change and not worth it?
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