$700 Million PowerBall... first three things you would do if you won?

[THE Bigzoman]

I'd devote a long amount of time planning my life.

I'd disappear, leaving behind only cleared debts and money gifts for my close ones. I'd go live life.

[Crissi]

1) pay parents back what they have invested in me, plus give them whatever they want to invest in the house.
2) give sister about 20 million to go live her dream
3) set up college accounts for all of my cousins kids (8 so far)



4) Buy the naming rights to UNT's football stadium, and rename it Mean Joe Green stadium.

[MatthewOU2015]

1. Build a state of the art football field for the high school I went to. It would have a jumbo tron, 40k seat capacity, luxury sky box, etc.

2. Buy houses for family

3. Travel around the US leaving big tip for cute waitresses.

[Zoaric]

1) Buy a nice little house for myself near my college as well as another elsewhere to
rent out.
2) Pay off all of my debts as well as those of my family.
3) Get my family newer vehicles.
4) Buy myself a top of the line desktop and laptop.
5) Invest in a couple of businesses.
6) Divide the remaining funds into trusts and off-shore accounts.

[Radux]

To begin, I'd take it all up front.

1.) Hire a good lawyer, CPA, and financial planner.
2.) Clear all debt for myself, family, and other close loved ones.
3.) Set up investments (like index funds and property and possibly other endeavors) for myself, and possibly trust funds for young family (nephew/niece/potential children/etc), and more secure retirement for my parents/in-laws.

Those would be the first 3 things. After that I could probably be a bit more selfish or whatever.
- I think the most selfish thing that I'd want to buy a ton of land.
- I think the thing I'd want to do the most for myself would be to hike the big 3 backpacking trails in the US.

[Roxinius]

I'd buy land and build a house out in the desert not a mansion but 4 bedroom at least

Pay off all my parents debt and make sure the can live comfortably for the rest of their days

And I'd buy a tank

[Tyrgannus]

I'd have enough money and influence to pull a lot of puppet strings in the music industry.

For good.

I'm sick of this whole "you have to be a dancing sex symbol to make it" bullcrap.

[Cthulhu 2020]

1. Build and stock a survival bunker
2. Buy lots of guns
3. Invest in gold to prepare for the impending liberal apocalypse

[Lawnmower]

I would, laws permitting, buy one of each number combination possible for every future lottery, then send myself to mars.

[anntheman]

1) Finish school.
2) Travel for the summer.
3) Work or grad school.

[Reah]

1. Cry tears of joy
2. Redeem the ticket
3. Quit my job once the money was in my account

[IIamaKing]

Pay off debt for all loved ones and insure their financial stability.
Buy a LOT of land, talking measured in square miles.
Build awesome home and live it up.

[Reeve]

Indeed, but really you give up about 50% in taxes.

The cash payout on the $700 million is $428.4 million. The top tax bracket is currently 39.6%. If you live in Texas, where I do, there's no state income tax. In the end, I'd walk away with approximately $258,753,600. So that's still a shit ton.

If you were to put $50 million somewhere like US Treasuries, where it's safe, but also only maybe keeps pace with inflation, and put the rest in a well diversified investment portfolio making 6-8% a year, your returns would start between $12.5MM and $16.7MM. If you then spent only half of that per year and reinvested the rest, at the end of 30 years, you'd have between $491MM and $651MM in your investments (plus the $50MM+ in your treasuries), and you'd be making annual returns between $29.5MM and $52MM. So there's your $700MM saved up, but along the way, you've spent between $300MM and $478MM.

I'll take the cash up front.

[Tyrgannus]

I would, laws permitting, buy one of each number combination possible for every future lottery, then send myself to mars.

Are you familiar with the term "house edge"?

Assuming a 292,201,338 to 1 odds of winning and a 2 dollar ticket, the jackpot would have to be over $584,402,676 AFTER TAX for that to make sense.

Lump sum cash amount is only 61.2% of what is posted is the posted amount assumes the 30 year annuity. On top of that, the federal government takes 25% of your winnings of the lump sum, and state taxes differ from state to state after that.

In order to make a guaranteed profit on the Powerball, the listed jackpot would have to be about 1.2 billion dollars


And that's STILL assuming you're not sharing the jackpot. Powerball has the freaking worst house edge of all gambling.

[Reeve]

Are you familiar with the term "house edge"?

Assuming a 292,201,338 to 1 odds of winning and a 2 dollar ticket, the jackpot would have to be over $584,402,676 AFTER TAX for that to make sense.

Lump sum cash amount is only 61.2% of what is posted is the posted amount assumes the 30 year annuity. On top of that, the federal government takes 25% of your winnings of the lump sum, and state taxes differ from state to state after that.

In order to make a guaranteed profit on the Powerball, the listed jackpot would have to be about 1.2 billion dollars


And that's STILL assuming you're not sharing the jackpot. Powerball has the freaking worst house edge of all gambling.

That after tax figure also only makes sense if you're the sole winner. If you have to split the pot, you're still fucked. Oops, didn't see your last line.

[Mistame]

1. Financial/Legal stuff.
2. Finally donate $1 to the presidential election fund.
3. Many hookers.

[Robozerim]

If I won 700 million....hmmm.....

1) Give my two weeks notice for quitting at work because I'm not a jerk that just vanishes.
2) Donate around 650 million to a variety of charities (assuming I get a full 700 million), which ones will be determined based on personal research into the matter. I legitimately wouldn't know what to do with 700 million dollars and it would be better spent helping people or funding research or something.
3) Take the remaining money and divide it by 60, and use the resulting number as my yearly "allowance" so that I'd be set for life without risking running out of money (as I doubt I'll live beyond 60 more years, though if I do even the most meager of bank interests rates should cover what little life I have left). Even with most of my winnings donated away, at 50 million left I'd still have over 800 000 per year, more than I'd know what to do with.

I'd probably help out family members too, but that would be after the above three.

[Reeve]

If I won 700 million....hmmm.....

1) Give my two weeks notice for quitting at work because I'm not a jerk that just vanishes.
2) Donate a minimum of 650 million to a variety of charities, which ones will be determined based on personal research into the matter. I legitimately wouldn't know what to do with 700 million dollars and it would be better spent helping people or funding research or something.
3) Take the remaining money and divide it by 60, and use the resulting number as my yearly "allowance" so that I'd be set for life without risking running out of money (as I doubt I'll live beyond 60 more years, though if I do even the most meager of bank interests rates should cover what little life I have left). Even with most of my winnings donated away, at 50 million left I'd still have over 800 000 per year, more than I'd know what to do with.

I'd probably help out family members too, but that would be after the above three.

I'd be more likely to donate out of my investment returns each year. You could give a lot more over 30 years that way.

[Nillah]

Give everyone I know (and like) at least a million each. Buy a nice house, probably a new computer just because, maybe some other video games and consoles I don't have. Buy some clothes. Maybe donate a bunch to some local animal shelters. Travel some and save the rest.

I'm sure I would keep working. I would get horribly bored if I didn't have a job.

[Robozerim]

I'd be more likely to donate out of my investment returns each year. You could give a lot more over 30 years that way.

Yes, I suppose that would be a reasonable choice as well.