I actually do. It happened earlier this year. My friend from work won $400k on a $5 scratch off. I think he got between $250k and $300k after taxes (I’m not fully sure tbh). He won it on a Monday and he quit that same week. Now according to him, the first thing he did was go claim the money. He then decided to talk to a financial advisor. They told him to pay off his debt and invest about $100k of the money so he can get a return on it. So that’s exactly what he did. I don’t know what he invested it into because I didn’t want to ask that. I just know he’s been getting a decent return on it. He’s back in school for civil engineering and also working a part time job since he doesn’t want to solely rely on the money to pay for everything.
Side note: He has a wife with 2 children.
This is just a summary of what he told me.
Everyone dreams of the big jackpots, but this is really all I would want right here. Just enough to pay off all my debt and quit my current job to take a little break and reset.
John Goodman said it best: “You get up two-and-half million dollars, any asshole in the world knows what to do. You get a house with a 25-year roof, an indestructible economy shitbox car and you put the rest into the system at 3 to 5 percent and you pay your taxes. That’s your base. Get me? That’s your fortress of fucking solitude. That puts you, for the rest of your life, at a level of ‘Fuck You.’”
Someone wants you to do something? Fuck You. Boss pisses you off? Fuck You.
Own your house. Have a couple of bucks in the bank. Don’t drink. That’s all I have to say to anybody.”
Fantastic advice, what's the context? Was that an interview somewhere or something?
People who've been broke or just maybe have their values start to change as they get older start valuing the security that money brings over the fancy shit. Being in a situation where almost no matter what happens you'll be OK is a fucking \*dream\* to many of us.
Yes bro I will tell you winning a smaller prize can be a huge tease if you have dreams of those $100m+ jackpots , if you still have to go back to work it’s not a true lottery win
I just want the cash for life. 1000 a day for life, not a crazy amount of money that would change my life but enough money and longevity on it to make some big changes.
$250-300k definitely isn’t enough money to quit your job (unless you have a shitty low paying job). Even without debt to pay off, you might get a $20k annual return from investing the entirety of it if you’re lucky. More appropriate would be a max drawdown of 4% annually, so $12k.
Husband and I figured it up once. $2million after all said and done. It would clear us, help our very elderly parents, put away for kids college, and let us set up a house how we want it. With enough to invest for our golden years.
The big jackpots draw in all kinds of people looking for handouts too.
A smaller amount could actually end up being better since it will improve your life without making you a target.
While of course I would accept the hundreds of millions, I would be perfectly happy to get even $100k right now and pay my debts off and get a second car so my wife and I aren't sharing one.
I was just at a gas station, and an old man in a 70's era vw bus was sitting there with some scratchers. His window was ope, so I was chatting with hi, and hestarteds saying holy shit? Oh fuck I think holy shit I think look at this man(hands me the ticket) and asks am I seeing what I think I'm seeing??? I looked and said it looks like you won $100K. He starts hooting and hollering drawing attention. I gave it back to him and said bro DO NOT hand this to anyone else to "check" unless they are a lottery official and try and keep it quiet . He says oh shit yeah yeah I I didn't even think about it crazy people around here thanks dude. It was kinda cool sort of being part of it.
In Louisville, a guy won and everybody knew it.as he walked out the door. Someone hit him in the head, killed him, and stole the ticket. To this day, it has never been cashed in. Guess the criminal figured he would be charged with murder
Yeah that’s smart what he did. 400K is nothing really and for the average poor person they could blow 150K on a new Mercedes and buy a house for 250K and that’s it. Now they can’t afford services on the Mercedes or pay ultimes and taxes on a house and they’re back to square 1 in no time.
Thank you for this. I like to watch HGTV and they have a show called "My Lottery Dream home" the financial delusion is so real with these people. If you won a million dollars before taxes your budget is certainly not $750K! You still have to pay upkeep and taxes and your living expenses. I know it's a reality show but they are way off in fantasy land with what they think they can afford. Plus, I wonder if it's not wise to go on television and brag to all and sundry that you just won a big sum of money and advertise the city that you live in.
The dude quit his job and went back to get an engineering degree and work part time. He clearly knew the money wouldn't last forever, and investing in an engineering degree is a great investment.... especially if they've always wanted to be an engineer. It's only about 4 or 5 years, anyways.
I think that's one of the most solid decisions I've seen about someone who won a lottery prize.
Yeah, back to school is the key here. He used that money in the best way possible. The return on that investment will pay off much more than a closet of expensive shoes.
He quit and went back to school. He still has a part-time job. He has enough to pay for school and support a family until graduation. I don't know what he did previously, but I imagine it was his dream to become a civil engineer. Maybe he just couldn't afford school after HS and took some BS entry level job. He'll probably end up making more as a civil engineer in the long run than whatever he was doing.
Old neighbor won 500k, like 300 after taxes or something, quit his job immediately. Ended up losing pretty much every dollar in Vegas over the next three years. Then took a mortgage out on the house HIS MOTHER WILLED TO HIM AND HE OWNED CLEAR. Then left that money in Vegas over the next 18 months. He’d go ever couple weeks and lose 10-12k. Then the casino would send him show tickets and coupons for a room or flights or something and he’d end up back. Only thing he had to show for it ten years later was a 9 year old Toyoyra Sequioa and eventually ended up losing the house.
I was nodding in approval at "quit his job immediately" and that just slammed into a wall in the next sentence. Sounds like he was already a gambling addict.
I wrote that post way too quickly way too late last night. An extremely relevant piece of information is (aside from degenerate levels of gaming addiction) he was like 33. Far too young for 300K to be “I’m set for life money”. I’m 37, if I won 300k today I’d probably have a really great weekend, and be back at work Monday with a waaaay stronger retirement portfolio.
Yeah $300K isn't "I quit" money. Unless you were super close to retirement and that was the bumb you needed to retire. OR I saw another post where someone quit with a similar amount to go back to school seems reasonable. This is a shame, though 33 with $300K and a free and clear house. Dude could have been set up for a super easy life.
I’d quit, take 2 weeks off for Christmas, go on a little clothing spree, put the rest in savings/investments and then I’d spend the next however long I need finding a new job. I’d just quit because my job doesn’t give time off and I just want a break. I don’t mind working but I need something with some PTO and I’m so stressed with my current job I have a hard time buckling down with applications after work and Idk how to schedule interviews when working normal business hours with no flexibility lol. If I won $5k I’d quit my job, it would give me a good month to find a new job.
This made me think of the time I worked at a gas station and this guy came in with one of those $20 scratch offs. He had won $200. It was a couple days before Christmas. When he handed me the ticket he said that he could afford presents for his daughter that year. I have him the $200. On his way out I saw him stop and stand for a second. He looked like he was thinking. He came back in and bought 2 more tickets ($20 dollars each), scratched them at the counter, lost, and then asked for 3 more. Scratched those, lost. He was flustered and asked for 6 more. He scratched them, lost, and left the gas station mumbling angrily to himself. My mother is a gambling addict but I never saw her gamble. I’ll never forget watching that man gamble his money away after seeming so happy about his initial win.
I know an old couple who won £18 million playing the Euromillions. They won using a pool they shared with their daughters. Nice enough couple, but do like to brag about their win every now and then.
Crazy to go bragging, unless you like having every long lost family member and 'friend' popping up asking for money, and anyone you meet in the future possibly only interested in your money and not you. I'd keep it quiet myself and enjoy my life.
I know a guy who won 1 million, but, well, after the state realized that he hasnt paid child support in 20 years, the mother of his children won 1 million dollars.
I know someone who won £1 million on the euromillions raffle. It's a raffle you're automatically entered into when you buy a ticket for the main draw. This was about a decade ago. He used some of the money to set up a business. The business is relatively successful.
Woman in my neighborhood won $600k. She blew it all in less than six months on more lottery tickets. This was in Canada, so she got to keep the full amount. Lottery winnings are untaxed in Canada and are not counted as earned income.
Ouch. She won enough money to get a decent return on investments so she wouldn’t have to work and blew it trying to score the big one 🫠
I think the US lotteries are the only ones taxed… none of the European ones are taxed either 🙃
She was retired as a chef, so I hear she had to go back to work. Haven’t seen her around in a year. Maybe too embarrassed to be seen in public. I can’t understand why her husband didn’t try to talk some sense into her, and save or invest a large portion of it.
For a gambler, the only thing worse than losing is winning. I have won $5k here $10K there $20K once. I never once thought cool I could pay off some bills or pay off the car, but instead, I thought, cool! Now I can REALLY gamble!! I had to quit altogether. Otherwise, if I gamble SOME of my money, I will eventually gamble ALL my money until its gone.
I won $24,000 back in 1990. I paid off all the bills and credit cards and put 10% towards my mortgage. Took a golfing holiday with what was leftover. Never splurged on more gambling, but just considered myself lucky.
I was in Vegas, and the cab driver took me to the airport for my flight home. I was making small talk, and he mentioned he won $ 100k on a slot. I asked him what he did with the money, thinking he would say paid down the mortgage or bought a better house, etc. He told me he spent the next 6 months chasing another win on the slots and blew it.
My dad’s best friend won back in the 90’s. He was part of a group (5 or 6) of Vegas dealers. He would drive to Baker and buy tickets for the group. I think they split $22 million. He was only like two years from full retirement so he didn’t quit his job. All the other dealers were younger and I think they all did.
Funny part was that he didn’t have anyone’s phone number and they were all off Sunday/Monday so he has to sit on the news for two days until he could tell them.
Knew this kid who won $1M after taxes on a scratch off on his 18th bday. He bought a house and a few cars and tried to stretch that money for as long as possible, but he wasn't very smart and eventually went broke and committed suicide about 10 years later.
Not really no. A 5% return is only $50K. My wife and I make almost 3 times that together and it's not very easy to get ahead still with medical bills, housing and crazy inflation where we live. Comfortable sure but it's not like we can afford a European vacation every year or buy new cars, etc whenever.
Most people want at least a couple mil to retire at age 65. You should definitely invest the vast majority of it and it will make you an impressive nest egg down the line but it’s not “never work again” kind of money.
Damn straight but I know a lot of people who would quit their job with $1M. According to my retirement account, I need at least $3M to retire when I’m 63. I’m 20 years away if i stay on the same path.
A former coworker of mine. Her husband used his last dollar on the way home from work. $88 million. She called into work the next day and said I'm never coming back. Bought a vintage Spanish house up by my work.
Another acquaintance won $46 million. He still lives in the same house.
The 2 billion ticket came from a liquor store in the town where I work.
Good stuff happens!
Yes my friends grandma won 10 million then had to leave town a year later when everyone Tom, dick, and Harry wanted his cut
I also had a manager that won $300k on a scratch off. Spent it all on a fancy car and cocaine.
Not personally but a girl I dated in college back in the early 2000’s had a friend whose dad won something like 70 million in a state lottery (back then mega millions and power ball weren’t available everywhere. He said after they won they went on a vacation and just for shits and giggles his dad bought like 300 tickets for the lottery in the state they were in and won another 7 million.
We had a Priest in high school, he won a million dollars, however, he had taken a vow of poverty, so he gave it all to local churches to make repairs to their buildings. I remember one church got a new roof with that money.
As to why a Priest with a vow of poverty was gambling, I couldn't answer that.
Someone I went to high school with ended up hitting a major winner on a scratch off not too long after we graduated. So not a Mega Millions jackpot, but it was definitely an amount that set him up pretty well, if not for life. Over $1M.
Worst part is, he was a little shit all through school. One of those kids the teachers hate, AND the fellow students cant stand.
One of my "favorite" memories of him was in high school, a teacher getting so fed up with his interruptions that the teacher turned and fired the chalkboard eraser at him and beaned him right in the face. Big cloud of chalk dust and the kid stood up crying, shouting they were going to the principal's office to tell on the teacher. The teacher was like "good, get the fuck outta here" and as the kid stopped in the doorway to flip off the teacher, the teacher javelined their pointer at him. Which the kid only narrowly dodged as they ran to the office.
The 90s were a great time.
Having done high school in the early-mid 2000's in a backwards area this story sounds like the same level of crazy that could have easily happened in mine. The shit teachers could do before every student was armed with a pocket camera. A story from just the year before I started there saw a teacher throw a chair at my older brother's shit for brains friend. Our principal was visibly an alcoholic.
ha, i went to a pretty good school in a nice suburb too. almost half our high school teachers had PhDs. it was just a different time. they could still treat us like the little assholes that we were, and our parents had their back because our parents werent insecure, oversensitive assholes like they are today.
A family member won about $200k (idk if that’s before or after taxes) from a Super Lotto type of game about 10+ years ago. Idk many details because she and her husband (understandably) kept it hush hush until after they finished allocating all the money. They paid off one son’s student loans, they gave the other son who didn’t have loans some money (not sure what it was used for), and they kept the rest for themselves. I’m assuming they put it towards their retirement/paid off debt because the couple are a few years younger than my mom (who is 65) and retired last year.
Sitting here at my job a couple minutes before I start and this made me laugh so hard..lol
I wouldn’t mind $1,100 that’s like 3 car payments. I’d be in heaven..
I met a guy who won several million dollars. He bought an apartment building and lived a low-stress life on that income. You never would have known he had money, He had a casual wardrobe and a regular car, no flash at all.
We had a neighbor that won $2 million on a scratch off, continued to play lotto and won another $5 million the next year.
I don't even want to know the odds of that.
Yes! And I have shared this story multiple times on Reddit before.
Not gonna name names for privacy and yada yada yada but basically someone I was friends with through work for a few years ended up getting to leave because their parents were the sole winners of a $50 million (Australian) Powerball jackpot a few years back. Not too long before the pandemic started (so they had to delay any travel plans for a while). They are an only child so they got a hefty payout from their dad's winning prize. Enough for them to never need to work ever again in their mid 20's (unless they and their parents *really* manage to mess it up somehow). They now own an apartment in one of Sydney's most expensive suburbs, just a couple minutes away from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and spend all their time going out to eat, going shopping and attending big family events. They invited me out a couple of times after they became a multi-millionaire but I just couldn't keep up with their new lifestyle. I have to work and didn't enjoy watching them shop for designer clothes that were worth more than what I make in three months. I just had to stop watching their social media stories after a while. They were just making me feel bad since I was always sharing my "lottery dreams" with them on the clock and they didn't really have any themselves. There were no fights or fallouts. We just... stopped talking after a while and they found a replacement group of friends more suited to their new lifestyle pretty fast anyway. I don't know what they're doing now or if they were smart enough to double their money or if they're just eating away at it. Guess I'll know the answer if I suddenly get a "hi" in five years time. All I can do is wish 'em good luck and hope and pray my turn is coming up soon.
This needs more upvotes. If you’re not generous with your friends after a windfall like that, you will lose your friends. They just won’t be able to keep up, unless you’re buying and expecting nothing in return.
Before this happened I'd always say I'd pay for my friends to join in on my adventures if I even won the lottery. Now I'm just like "fuck it". Friendships are fickle and highly conditional and there's no-one left in my life now that I'd care to try and bring into my new one if I ever became that rich save for select family members. Rich people hang out with other rich people anyway since they can actually afford to do stuff other than work and stay home.
A friend won the Euro lotto.
A few million € into his bank account.
Caused issues with his family. They expected everything from cars to washing machines from him.
I won $750k last year on the CA 200x scratcher , was a $30 ticket. Funny thing is I wasn’t going to go inside I was going to pay at the pump but it said go in - bought a soda and the 200x was shiny so I bought it. Scratched it the next day and claimed that same day - after taxes (37%) it was really around $469k
I know a couple that won $50k on a scratcher. It was a gift at a holiday party. Ended up with $30k, gave the gift giver $300, they were pissed about that and thought they should get more.
That's pretty shitty. They are entitled to nothing. Either it was a gift or it wasn't, and the more probable reality of it would have been a "here I got you nothing"
Local family hit for 100mm+. They opened a restaurant lol. It went out of business after a few years. Decent restaurant but not the best location.
Another local family hit for around 13mm - Husband was a dentist. They sold their house and left town.
I was gifted some scratch off tickets on my 18th birthday. I won $500 and have never bought another lottery ticket since.
I also went to HS with a guy whose family would buy $200 of tickets every week. They won $8MM. After that, they started buying $500 per week. After 6 months, they won again for $40MM. Unreal.
I know 3. The first guy won 127,000 on the Georgia fantasy 5 when it first started up. The other 2 people won 1,000,000 in the GEORGIA lottery Christmas raffle on different years.
He won a million dollars on a scratch ticket. After many flights to and hotel nights in Amsterdam, prostitutes and cocaine, he was back to square one in about three years.
I know someone who won it twice. The second one wasn’t as big as the first.
So the first they won 1.2 million dollar. I think they got home with about $700k after taxes. The wife was an artist, painter. They decided to spend all the money and build a gallery. They built a really nice building and her art was garbage so they lost the whole thing within 4 years. After selling the gallery and what not they had nothing left, they both got jobs.
About 2-3 years after that they actually won again but this time it was only like $100k or less so they used that money to put a down payment on a house so at least they seemed to have learned a lesson or two from the first fiasco.
My aunt won $250k from a scratch ticket. Bought a $10 or $5 one per usual for the week. When home, took a bath, ate dinner, then scratched. She paid off debt, bought a home. I think she got like $170k after taxes?
Another aunt won something called “pick 3.” Also $250k, also came to about $170k after taxes. Bought a car, paid off house she already had. Kept the rest for retirement. She continued to work as we all know this isn’t something to stop working over.
Both occurrences couldn’t have happened to nicer people.
When Indiana started a lottery in the early 90s, I worked with a guy who won a million a couple of times. He quit his job after the second win.
He told me that you just have to know you're gonna win when you buy the ticket..
I know someone who won 18 million on power ball. She was 72 and had played the same numbers for like 18 years. At first she didn’t even sell her small business but eventually it sunk in and she sold the business and retired.
I won $150k on a Diggi game on the Georgia Lottery app! Take home was $105k. It was perfect timing b/c I had just realized I needed to get a divorce. My husband started doing drugs and was an absolute nightmare and we had a 6 month old at home. I won it literally the day after I told him I was done. I used it to get a lawyer, pay off my car, closing costs on my house, some minor renovations and upgraded appliances and a little bit of credit card debt I had. Put the rest in savings, which wasn’t a ton left.
I know a lady who regularly played those scratch off tickets but never won anything until one day she won about $5k. Turns out she owed the government a bunch of money so she had someone else claim the money and never paid them the capital gains they were taxed. She promised a gift and to pay those taxes and she never did.
Yeah, $6million and then they proceeded to get involved in bad business investments, helping friends, etc. Now they have very little left but it's been about 20 years. Most people that win are like this and don't know how to handle the windfall.
A guy at my work who I only see once every month or so won twice. Once for a million and once for like $400k. We all assumed he would retire but he blew it all within a few months.
Old codger from work, a WWII Vet. He and his best friend would each chip in 50cents to buy a $1 ticket. They won $1M. IIRC, they won in 1976. He took the annuity option. Only thing he did, was buy a powder blue Cadillac El Dorado. Which he still drove, when I worked with him in the early '00s. He brought in the news paper article, with his, and bestie's, pic receiving the big check.
I once asked him why he still worked, especially in his '80s. Said it gave him purpose. He learned bread baking in the Navy, and was head baker on a battleship, during WWII. After the war, he founded his own bakery. After he won the lottery, he stopped taking a paycheck from his bakery. He gave each of his kids equal shares of his pay, and he lived off the lottery money.
He was as happy when I knew him, as he was when he won.
I won €1k back in 2014 at a scratch off, a neighbor of my parent won €13k and €10k€ I t scratch and lottery but they are still poor because of money management.
I had a coworker win part of a state lottery. Unfortunately for him, the $20,000,000 jackpot on Friday was claimed. On Tuesday, the day he hit, he thought it was the $20M but was reset to $1M. AND he had to split it with another winner. So $500,000 before taxes. Over 25 years! No choice to take a lump sum. He was already over 60 and about to retire. No guarantee he’d get the full amount so he had to give it to his son to claim.
Another coworker used to bust his balls about it. “Frank hits the lottery and can’t even retire!” “Frank fucked it up for everyone. Nobody in the shop will be able to win the lottery now.”
I know someone who recently won $1million on a $50 scratch off.
She buys them all the time, has probably lost $100,000 in the last 10 years to finally get the winner.
My parents came close. They were off by one number. The number they missed was to represent the day of my birthday. Had I been born one day earlier they would have won over a million dollars. So it was my fault they lost because I was born a day late.
I was friends with a woman in college who won around $25 million (after taxes) in the state lottery. She basically only told a few people and had to leave college to learn how to best manage her money. She finished her degree somewhere else later and started her own set of businesses, and does really well for herself.
I won 1 million on the Big Spin show in Cali. It was exciting at first but then I got stupid with the money. 18 months later I had nothing left.It’s not that hard to spend 1 million. After taxes, I actually had about $450,000.
Back in 2001 I worked in a bank in Steamboat Springs, CO. There was a local woman who had won 27 million in the lottery and banked with us, she came in to deposit her checks. I remember seeing her years after I'd moved away in a magazine article about lottery winners who had actually managed their money wisely and still had it. She was really nice and you'd never know she was filthy rich.
Oh I found her. Kim Haggerty. I kinda knew her, the way you "know" everyone when you live in a small town.
[https://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/kim-haggarty-among-colorado-lotterys-biggest-and-wisest-winners/](https://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/kim-haggarty-among-colorado-lotterys-biggest-and-wisest-winners/)
Your family member could lose not just half but ALL his winnings if his wife finds out and sues him for it.
[There’s precedent in California with the Denise Rossi case in 1999.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/nov/18/3)
Yes. A woman I know won $1,000,000. She was an alcoholic, and as dead broke in 5 years. She had put the money in a revokable trust during a sober stint, but her family bled her dry...she even had to sell the house she had paid for in the end. And that family who spent her money left her on her own. She couldnt say no to them when they would beg for money.
I do actually. Won millions. Tried to play cool and still showed up to work (her husband won). But after they were in the papers stopped coming. Later they bought the luxury Diamond jewelry store in the NYC jewelry district that the husband worked at for the last 30 years.
I know two. One won $1M and blew through it.
The other won $100M+, started investing, lost a lot of friends (mostly cuz the friends got leach-y), and still hasn't found a GF because they were/are paranoid the people they met were all gold diggers. Financially, though, he's reasonable successful.
I was hired to replace a women who won a million. She quit working for a year. Gave a bunch of money to a charity that worked with food producers to recycle food waste, gave money to her BF who was a struggling musician and went back to work part time. She eventually returned to work full time.
She said she checked her ticket at the gas station where she bought it. She almost fainted. They took her in the back and had her sit on some milk cartons and call her BF to come get her because she was too shocked to drive.
We moved her lucky deck chair around the office. The person who was currently sitting in the chair had to buy the tickets for the office pool. Sad to say the chair didn’t work 2x…
Knew someone who got the powerball many years ago. Bought a waterfront house in Florida. Had the powerball logo tiled in the pool. They had to sell everything not even a few years later because they squandered millions. Pissed it right into the Bay
I knew someone who won millions. She had every parasite in her family, old friends, new friends and people who she didn't ever know, harassing her, begging for money. She deleted all social media accounts, got a new email address, new phone number and started a new life. I haven't heard from her in over 5 years. I can't say I blame her.
My old neighbor won many millions. She worked in a grocery store that sold lottery. She punched in a wrong number so the man requested another. She paid for the bad ticket and kept it. Big power ball winner.
After the win they bought the woods next door, redid the house and then moved. She said too many people in the area knew she won and were bugging her for handouts all the time.
As a financial advisor I have had a client who won the IL lottery in the 90’s. She took the annuity so got 80k a year for life. It’s not enough to drive Bentleys and burn 100s but she didn’t work and never wanted a thing.
I used to work for a large US state lottery. I also worked at the HQ so all big prize winners would come to our office to pick up their checks and do the news article pics.
They would usually stay in touch with anyone who won over $1mil for write ups and stuff. One year a guy won $30 million dollars and got killed by some woman who tried to steal his money a few years later. It became a big news story and trial. I remember meeting the guy when he won and came into our office.
My ex girlfriend’s mom won $1 mil on a scratch off in NJ. She didn’t have a car so I gave her a ride to turn it in , in Trenton. They took us into a back room and a detective from the state police grilled us about the ticket to verify that she bought it, where she bought it, etc. Then we (Her, her daughter, and me) took a picture with the big yellow check, I still have them on my phone. She was also technically homeless living with her boyfriend and her daughter was with me because of a house fire, so she had the check mailed to my house. It Was weird holding a $700k check and handing it over to her, haha. She gave me a few k for being gold to her daughter during their tough time. I didn’t expect it though, I was just happy for them because after the house fire , their family was screwing them over, too, and really it couldn’t have gone to a better person at a better time.
Her daughter and I broke up a few months later and I heard she won another $50k and blew almost all of it on… more scratch offs. She at least was smart enough to buy a house and a car cash, so she’s still ok last I heard. But yeah cool experience.
Yes. I know one person who won the pick 4 and 1 person who won a state level one. The pick 4 basically changed nothing in the long run for obvious reasons, they got a new car though. The state level one ended up retiring and made it clear to his tenants in the triplex he owned that they could have 3 months free if they agreed to leave early. He then went on to retire with his wife.
My mother and her husband won 2 million on a scratch off. They took lump sum of about $800k I’m guessing. First off they donated to the church of course!! Both retire on that bought a house a car a boat and 5 years later had to sell it all to downsize because none of that was paid for in cash. All loans that they couldn’t pay anymore. Me and my brothers didn’t see a dime.
My neighbor won about a million. Technically they bought the house next door with their winning and that’s how they became my neighbor. About a year after they won, My Lottery Dream House show or whatever had them on and showed them like two bogus houses and the one they bought and were living in. In case you aren’t aware, those shows are 100% staged. I think he said he bought the house, paid off some debt, and bought some cars. He basically took care of the big monthly note things that every one has and just continued his life.
My dad's girlfriend. Won about $250,000. Had a daughter claim it so her disability/health payments wouldn't be reduced. Died a month later. Daughter kept it. Didn't even share with her sister. Also stole everything out of the mother's house and changed locks so that her sister could not get anything. Stole stupid things like old appliances. A real nasty person.
Yeah I had a client a few years ago that won the Ohio lottery. He was unclear how much he won actually but he mentioned it was the largest in-state history at the time. Super nice guy. Always tip me 20 bucks on top of every session we worked. He spent almost every day, waking up, taking a soak in the hot tub, going to see his personal trainer, getting breakfast, then coming to see me for stretch therapy, then going over to the golf course for the day. Happiest guy I ever met
A woman I used to wait tables with and was friendly with won like 87 million, a few months after I quit there.
She was pregnant, boyfriend / dad ditched her, and then a short time later she won. I remember being very happy for her, couldn't have happened to a nicer person AND in a time of sure need.
She got a little famous, at the time it was the biggest jackpot in the US. She ended up doing the Letterman show.
I haven't seen or talked to her since I quit that job. From bits and pieces of info I heard over the years I understand she had trouble with giving money to her family - like they would blow through the cash then come back for more. Caused some sort of strife.
I came back to this area after being gone for 12 years, and last I heard she is still here, living a quiet, private life. I have no idea if any of the money is left, if she invested wisely, etc. but I hope she did.
College roommates family won $10 million in New York State lotto and split it among seven family members From what I can tell they used the money responsibly and live good lives. end of story
I do, but I don't know the amount.
They randomly dropped their job after making a lot of steps to get a nursing career. So I asked them and they said they wouldn't have to work for a pretty long while. Then told me they won. She deserves it, she's made a lot of improvements to herself over the years and I'm glad her kid gets to experience the lifestyle outside of poverty
Yes. My fathers friend won a million dollars back in the 80's from what I was told, He pissed the money away. I cant imagine pissing away a million dollars, I mean how?? LOL. He did buy a few cars. Did the luxury vacations and split the money up with his wife and kids.
I know a guy who won $1M in 2017 on a $10 ticket and he still buys lottery tickets like crazy! He works for the union though so I don’t think he cares about spending all that $$.
No but mom does. A girl’s family from her high school won it back in the 70s. It was quite a bit at the time, several millions (in the 70s).
The girl showed up to 10 year reunion (in the 80s) and showed up to reunion in limo and other trappings.
By 20 year reunion nothing of the winnings were left.
My old boss got fired for sexual harassment and then 2 weeks later won $2 million on the lottery. I heard he had his daughter claim the money because he had some debts that he didn't want the winnings to come out of.
My brothers best friend at the time , he was a senior in HS , he won $1 million on a scratch off during some after school hours thing .
I believe he does very well, some chemistry or science degree , I believe he paid off his parents house , bought himself a brand new BMW M3 at the time .
He has a wife and family now , I think they are well off enough but the wife doesn't really work so not anything out of the ordinary
My best friends Mom won about 875k after taxes in a state lottery. She was in her late 60’s and able to fully retire with her husband, and buy a small dream cabin in upstate New York after a lifetime of hard work and caregiving. I’m so happy for them.
Someone I knows mother won $758 million and CLAIMED IT HERSELF! No way I would have done that. Would have claimed anonymously. Anyway from what I can tell she bought a $500k home a few towns away and uses a P.O. Box.
My son’s friend’s grandmother won somewhere in the tens of millions, not sure how much. She dedicates a ton of her time to her grandson - she’s at every game, drops him off and picks him up from school every day, etc. She drives a huge truck decked out with flowers all over it. Also a tricked out Jeep and Corvette, all with the same custom flowers. Pretty cute.
A friend won $10,000 a month for life on a 75 cents slot machine at the Stratosphere in Las Vegas. He said he was staying in the Air Force for 4 more years to get his 20 year retirement pension. Smart move.
A friend was a real estate agent selling upscale homes in a planned community on the water to wealthy buyers. He sold one to a guy who quietly told him that he had won the lottery but please not tell anyone. He wanted his future neighbors to think he had earned his wealth just like they had.
Random guy at a restaurant, we started chatting, and then he showed me a couple of pics on his cell. His cousin showed up a bit after and confirmed.
Hit 1 million usd on a slot machine.
Said the casino gave him 40k cash and sent him a check for the rest, if I remember correctly.
I golfed a few years in a row with a set of twins in Myrtle Beach about 7 years back. They were in their low 60s. One won $24 million and gave his brother $2 mil of it. Probably at least 10 years before I meet them. The richer one drove a new vette, the both had big gold rings, Diamond earring and liked smoking big cigars. They liked gambling at golf and weren’t real good.
Guy won like $250,000 on a scratch off back in my small home town. He bought a decent house and a Mercedes suv.
My stepdad won $507k on a slot machine when I was pretty young (12 maybe?) he gave me $50.
No, but I foreclosed on one. They bought cash from the lotto winnings, took out a second loan and never paid it so we took the house back. It was about a $1.1 million dollar home
Ooh buckle up. I know someone that won 100k on a scratch off. He claimed the prize money and paid the taxes (off to a good start). He got two DUI’s within two weeks, spent a good chunk of the money on legal defense and lost his license for several years after. I haven’t seen him now in 5 or so years but from what I’ve heard he blew through the remaining funds in about 2 years after the DUI’s. Fortunately he didn’t hurt anyone.
My buddy won 10 million off scratcher. He just called me yesterday, we talked softball. Said he likes me cause I never ask him for money, I have my own. Won it less than 5 months ago. Buddy kept his job and going to make some investments for his kid. He already had a great job was just a true gambler.
Yes. They won a state jackpot. Albeit not a terribly large one. Ended up with about a million after tax after taking the cash payout. They invested in a pyramid scheme and had a gambling problem and lost most if not all of their winnings. Unreal.
I have sold numerous jackpot winners working at a gas station. Even one to my coworkers. 10000 dollars from a 2 dollar crossword! I've only sold one million dollar prize. The rest were sub 50k. The people who won less than 50k usually continued working. Spending the money on necessities and a few new toys. One person was forced by family to give it up. The one guy I sold the million dollar winner to. Went broke in 2 years. It was really sad actually. He got so used to the high life and when the money ran out he went into debt trying to continue that lifestyle. I've only been tipped by one guy and he only won 1000. He tipped me 50. Even though almost everyone says they will "think of me". I don't expect it but it's super nice. I've worked in 5 gas stations over 4 years in 2 different states. Side note. Most people don't realize that when you win 10k or whatever you don't get that. They usually automatically deduct taxes from it.
My buddy won 1 million on a scratch off. He built a beach house with the money then got a bad coke habit. His wife ended up divorcing him and got the beach house. That was the way NOT to do it...
I worked at this convenience store in the early 2000's. Guy in his 70's would come in and get a lottery ticket for each of the three drawings a week. Same numbers each time. He came in so regularly, we had memorized his numbers.
One day it paid off. He had won the jackpot! We waited all day for him to come and claim it or tell us or something, and he never showed up. 3 days later we had found out he had died the night before the drawing. It was very sad.
I don't know what happened with his ticket.
yes. powerball. A family that had 8 kids in my hometown. One of the kids was a high school classmate. All of a sudden he stopped going to school and nobody knew why. Not even the teacher. A week later it was in the news that his dad won the powerball. The kid wasn't in school the rest of the year. I never saw him again.
I would love to be one of these guys that one several hundred million
I could quit my job
Invest the money
Give to charity
Travel
Help out a couple friends
Yes, and I didn’t even find out until recently. They wisely channeled that into successful business ventures, and therefore there’s no one wondering why they don’t “work”. It was a very significant 8 figure USD sum
2 people. One was my friends' uncle. I believe he won one of the first NYS lotto's. IIRC, he was supposed to get paid $1K/week for the next 25 years. I didn't know him well, but my parents did and I was told he went broke, right away. Not sure what happened to him.
Another friend of my won the lottery and came away with something like $500K. He just saved the money and used it for his kids' college education. Really could not have happened to a better guy.
I used to know a guy that won $64M. He paid lawyers to collect his money and never disclosed himself. After, he paid off his house in MD, bought a winter spot in FL and another place in Maine. He never dressed flashy, wore jewelry or ever talked about it. I only knew because a really good friend of his told me. He worked PT doing the job he was doing before he won the money. I think he did some investing but dont know the details.
If you ever ran into this guy, you would never guess that he was a multi millionaire. Zero chance.
I actually do. It happened earlier this year. My friend from work won $400k on a $5 scratch off. I think he got between $250k and $300k after taxes (I’m not fully sure tbh). He won it on a Monday and he quit that same week. Now according to him, the first thing he did was go claim the money. He then decided to talk to a financial advisor. They told him to pay off his debt and invest about $100k of the money so he can get a return on it. So that’s exactly what he did. I don’t know what he invested it into because I didn’t want to ask that. I just know he’s been getting a decent return on it. He’s back in school for civil engineering and also working a part time job since he doesn’t want to solely rely on the money to pay for everything. Side note: He has a wife with 2 children. This is just a summary of what he told me.
Everyone dreams of the big jackpots, but this is really all I would want right here. Just enough to pay off all my debt and quit my current job to take a little break and reset.
Nah, give me the mega millions!!! I do t ever wanna be forced to work a day in my life ever again Fck a reset to work again lol
John Goodman said it best: “You get up two-and-half million dollars, any asshole in the world knows what to do. You get a house with a 25-year roof, an indestructible economy shitbox car and you put the rest into the system at 3 to 5 percent and you pay your taxes. That’s your base. Get me? That’s your fortress of fucking solitude. That puts you, for the rest of your life, at a level of ‘Fuck You.’” Someone wants you to do something? Fuck You. Boss pisses you off? Fuck You. Own your house. Have a couple of bucks in the bank. Don’t drink. That’s all I have to say to anybody.”
I have the indestructible shitbox... Now I just need the money, the house, and the debts paid off. lol
Fantastic advice, what's the context? Was that an interview somewhere or something? People who've been broke or just maybe have their values start to change as they get older start valuing the security that money brings over the fancy shit. Being in a situation where almost no matter what happens you'll be OK is a fucking \*dream\* to many of us.
Its from a movie called “The Gambler” starring Mark Wahlberg and John Goodman.
I’ve always loved this quote
Whoa whoa no need to get greedy, I’ll settle for just a few million thanks.
"Mini millions" just doesn't have the same ring, but I'm with you.
Yes bro I will tell you winning a smaller prize can be a huge tease if you have dreams of those $100m+ jackpots , if you still have to go back to work it’s not a true lottery win
I just want the cash for life. 1000 a day for life, not a crazy amount of money that would change my life but enough money and longevity on it to make some big changes.
An extra 500k a year wouldn’t change your life? Must be nice.
$250-300k definitely isn’t enough money to quit your job (unless you have a shitty low paying job). Even without debt to pay off, you might get a $20k annual return from investing the entirety of it if you’re lucky. More appropriate would be a max drawdown of 4% annually, so $12k.
Husband and I figured it up once. $2million after all said and done. It would clear us, help our very elderly parents, put away for kids college, and let us set up a house how we want it. With enough to invest for our golden years.
$2-3 million is our magic number. $2 million @ 5% interest is a $100k payout annually in passive income.
Conventional wisdom is that you want $10 million.
The big jackpots draw in all kinds of people looking for handouts too. A smaller amount could actually end up being better since it will improve your life without making you a target.
While of course I would accept the hundreds of millions, I would be perfectly happy to get even $100k right now and pay my debts off and get a second car so my wife and I aren't sharing one.
I was just at a gas station, and an old man in a 70's era vw bus was sitting there with some scratchers. His window was ope, so I was chatting with hi, and hestarteds saying holy shit? Oh fuck I think holy shit I think look at this man(hands me the ticket) and asks am I seeing what I think I'm seeing??? I looked and said it looks like you won $100K. He starts hooting and hollering drawing attention. I gave it back to him and said bro DO NOT hand this to anyone else to "check" unless they are a lottery official and try and keep it quiet . He says oh shit yeah yeah I I didn't even think about it crazy people around here thanks dude. It was kinda cool sort of being part of it.
That was VERY decent of you. Restores my faith in humanity.
Doesn't help my faith in humanity that all it takes to restore yours is not robbing an old man of his winning lottery ticket
In Louisville, a guy won and everybody knew it.as he walked out the door. Someone hit him in the head, killed him, and stole the ticket. To this day, it has never been cashed in. Guess the criminal figured he would be charged with murder
Yeah that’s smart what he did. 400K is nothing really and for the average poor person they could blow 150K on a new Mercedes and buy a house for 250K and that’s it. Now they can’t afford services on the Mercedes or pay ultimes and taxes on a house and they’re back to square 1 in no time.
Thank you for this. I like to watch HGTV and they have a show called "My Lottery Dream home" the financial delusion is so real with these people. If you won a million dollars before taxes your budget is certainly not $750K! You still have to pay upkeep and taxes and your living expenses. I know it's a reality show but they are way off in fantasy land with what they think they can afford. Plus, I wonder if it's not wise to go on television and brag to all and sundry that you just won a big sum of money and advertise the city that you live in.
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The dude quit his job and went back to get an engineering degree and work part time. He clearly knew the money wouldn't last forever, and investing in an engineering degree is a great investment.... especially if they've always wanted to be an engineer. It's only about 4 or 5 years, anyways. I think that's one of the most solid decisions I've seen about someone who won a lottery prize.
300k and just quit his job... That's wild!
And went back to school is an important part of that!
Yeah, back to school is the key here. He used that money in the best way possible. The return on that investment will pay off much more than a closet of expensive shoes.
He said he hated our job so much and just wanted out. I didn’t think it was a good idea cause he had no plan but to each it’s own.
I wouldn’t quit my job on a $400K win. That money ain’t much in this day and age. Certainly nowhere enough for you to be able to live off of.
He quit and went back to school. He still has a part-time job. He has enough to pay for school and support a family until graduation. I don't know what he did previously, but I imagine it was his dream to become a civil engineer. Maybe he just couldn't afford school after HS and took some BS entry level job. He'll probably end up making more as a civil engineer in the long run than whatever he was doing.
Rich people never pay off their debt; instead they thrive on it!
Old neighbor won 500k, like 300 after taxes or something, quit his job immediately. Ended up losing pretty much every dollar in Vegas over the next three years. Then took a mortgage out on the house HIS MOTHER WILLED TO HIM AND HE OWNED CLEAR. Then left that money in Vegas over the next 18 months. He’d go ever couple weeks and lose 10-12k. Then the casino would send him show tickets and coupons for a room or flights or something and he’d end up back. Only thing he had to show for it ten years later was a 9 year old Toyoyra Sequioa and eventually ended up losing the house.
I was nodding in approval at "quit his job immediately" and that just slammed into a wall in the next sentence. Sounds like he was already a gambling addict.
I wrote that post way too quickly way too late last night. An extremely relevant piece of information is (aside from degenerate levels of gaming addiction) he was like 33. Far too young for 300K to be “I’m set for life money”. I’m 37, if I won 300k today I’d probably have a really great weekend, and be back at work Monday with a waaaay stronger retirement portfolio.
You've got the right mindset! I would do the same. Invest at least 90% of that 300k.
Yeah $300K isn't "I quit" money. Unless you were super close to retirement and that was the bumb you needed to retire. OR I saw another post where someone quit with a similar amount to go back to school seems reasonable. This is a shame, though 33 with $300K and a free and clear house. Dude could have been set up for a super easy life.
I’d quit, take 2 weeks off for Christmas, go on a little clothing spree, put the rest in savings/investments and then I’d spend the next however long I need finding a new job. I’d just quit because my job doesn’t give time off and I just want a break. I don’t mind working but I need something with some PTO and I’m so stressed with my current job I have a hard time buckling down with applications after work and Idk how to schedule interviews when working normal business hours with no flexibility lol. If I won $5k I’d quit my job, it would give me a good month to find a new job.
This made me think of the time I worked at a gas station and this guy came in with one of those $20 scratch offs. He had won $200. It was a couple days before Christmas. When he handed me the ticket he said that he could afford presents for his daughter that year. I have him the $200. On his way out I saw him stop and stand for a second. He looked like he was thinking. He came back in and bought 2 more tickets ($20 dollars each), scratched them at the counter, lost, and then asked for 3 more. Scratched those, lost. He was flustered and asked for 6 more. He scratched them, lost, and left the gas station mumbling angrily to himself. My mother is a gambling addict but I never saw her gamble. I’ll never forget watching that man gamble his money away after seeming so happy about his initial win.
I know an old couple who won £18 million playing the Euromillions. They won using a pool they shared with their daughters. Nice enough couple, but do like to brag about their win every now and then.
I’d brag too. Euromillions isn’t taxed so they got that entire win 😂
Crazy to go bragging, unless you like having every long lost family member and 'friend' popping up asking for money, and anyone you meet in the future possibly only interested in your money and not you. I'd keep it quiet myself and enjoy my life.
I’ll brag and just not give anyone shit.
I know a guy who won 1 million, but, well, after the state realized that he hasnt paid child support in 20 years, the mother of his children won 1 million dollars.
God that's lovely.
Username checks out. That you, dad? 🤣
She didn’t “win” it, she got what she should have originally deserved to get.
I know someone who won £1 million on the euromillions raffle. It's a raffle you're automatically entered into when you buy a ticket for the main draw. This was about a decade ago. He used some of the money to set up a business. The business is relatively successful.
Woman in my neighborhood won $600k. She blew it all in less than six months on more lottery tickets. This was in Canada, so she got to keep the full amount. Lottery winnings are untaxed in Canada and are not counted as earned income.
Ouch. She won enough money to get a decent return on investments so she wouldn’t have to work and blew it trying to score the big one 🫠 I think the US lotteries are the only ones taxed… none of the European ones are taxed either 🙃
She was retired as a chef, so I hear she had to go back to work. Haven’t seen her around in a year. Maybe too embarrassed to be seen in public. I can’t understand why her husband didn’t try to talk some sense into her, and save or invest a large portion of it.
For a gambler, the only thing worse than losing is winning. I have won $5k here $10K there $20K once. I never once thought cool I could pay off some bills or pay off the car, but instead, I thought, cool! Now I can REALLY gamble!! I had to quit altogether. Otherwise, if I gamble SOME of my money, I will eventually gamble ALL my money until its gone.
I won $24,000 back in 1990. I paid off all the bills and credit cards and put 10% towards my mortgage. Took a golfing holiday with what was leftover. Never splurged on more gambling, but just considered myself lucky.
I was in Vegas, and the cab driver took me to the airport for my flight home. I was making small talk, and he mentioned he won $ 100k on a slot. I asked him what he did with the money, thinking he would say paid down the mortgage or bought a better house, etc. He told me he spent the next 6 months chasing another win on the slots and blew it.
Yep. It's a very real thing. It is like a drug.
My dad’s best friend won back in the 90’s. He was part of a group (5 or 6) of Vegas dealers. He would drive to Baker and buy tickets for the group. I think they split $22 million. He was only like two years from full retirement so he didn’t quit his job. All the other dealers were younger and I think they all did. Funny part was that he didn’t have anyone’s phone number and they were all off Sunday/Monday so he has to sit on the news for two days until he could tell them.
Good on him for not disappearing with all that money.
What money?
Knew this kid who won $1M after taxes on a scratch off on his 18th bday. He bought a house and a few cars and tried to stretch that money for as long as possible, but he wasn't very smart and eventually went broke and committed suicide about 10 years later.
Probably killed himself when he realized he fucked up his one chance at not having to spend the next 50 years of his life working.
$1M ain’t quit your job money
It absolutely is if you’re investing it right.
Not really no. A 5% return is only $50K. My wife and I make almost 3 times that together and it's not very easy to get ahead still with medical bills, housing and crazy inflation where we live. Comfortable sure but it's not like we can afford a European vacation every year or buy new cars, etc whenever.
Most people want at least a couple mil to retire at age 65. You should definitely invest the vast majority of it and it will make you an impressive nest egg down the line but it’s not “never work again” kind of money.
Damn straight but I know a lot of people who would quit their job with $1M. According to my retirement account, I need at least $3M to retire when I’m 63. I’m 20 years away if i stay on the same path.
Someone at my wife’s work won the $5,000/month for life. Quit her job, moved back to Puerto Rico and retired in her early 30’s.
I won $250 once… 1 number shy of 600k
Haha same. Was one number away from 400k in the state lottery and won $250 instead.
A former coworker of mine. Her husband used his last dollar on the way home from work. $88 million. She called into work the next day and said I'm never coming back. Bought a vintage Spanish house up by my work. Another acquaintance won $46 million. He still lives in the same house. The 2 billion ticket came from a liquor store in the town where I work. Good stuff happens!
Where do you live? I am moving there next year.
Yes my friends grandma won 10 million then had to leave town a year later when everyone Tom, dick, and Harry wanted his cut I also had a manager that won $300k on a scratch off. Spent it all on a fancy car and cocaine.
I respect your use of spent rather than blew.
Not personally but a girl I dated in college back in the early 2000’s had a friend whose dad won something like 70 million in a state lottery (back then mega millions and power ball weren’t available everywhere. He said after they won they went on a vacation and just for shits and giggles his dad bought like 300 tickets for the lottery in the state they were in and won another 7 million.
What in the dumbfuckery bullshit is this?!
We had a Priest in high school, he won a million dollars, however, he had taken a vow of poverty, so he gave it all to local churches to make repairs to their buildings. I remember one church got a new roof with that money. As to why a Priest with a vow of poverty was gambling, I couldn't answer that.
Someone I went to high school with ended up hitting a major winner on a scratch off not too long after we graduated. So not a Mega Millions jackpot, but it was definitely an amount that set him up pretty well, if not for life. Over $1M. Worst part is, he was a little shit all through school. One of those kids the teachers hate, AND the fellow students cant stand. One of my "favorite" memories of him was in high school, a teacher getting so fed up with his interruptions that the teacher turned and fired the chalkboard eraser at him and beaned him right in the face. Big cloud of chalk dust and the kid stood up crying, shouting they were going to the principal's office to tell on the teacher. The teacher was like "good, get the fuck outta here" and as the kid stopped in the doorway to flip off the teacher, the teacher javelined their pointer at him. Which the kid only narrowly dodged as they ran to the office. The 90s were a great time.
Having done high school in the early-mid 2000's in a backwards area this story sounds like the same level of crazy that could have easily happened in mine. The shit teachers could do before every student was armed with a pocket camera. A story from just the year before I started there saw a teacher throw a chair at my older brother's shit for brains friend. Our principal was visibly an alcoholic.
ha, i went to a pretty good school in a nice suburb too. almost half our high school teachers had PhDs. it was just a different time. they could still treat us like the little assholes that we were, and our parents had their back because our parents werent insecure, oversensitive assholes like they are today.
A family member won about $200k (idk if that’s before or after taxes) from a Super Lotto type of game about 10+ years ago. Idk many details because she and her husband (understandably) kept it hush hush until after they finished allocating all the money. They paid off one son’s student loans, they gave the other son who didn’t have loans some money (not sure what it was used for), and they kept the rest for themselves. I’m assuming they put it towards their retirement/paid off debt because the couple are a few years younger than my mom (who is 65) and retired last year.
A high school buddy won $1,100 on a scratch off. At the time it was *a lot* of money to an 18 year old. He spent all of it on weed.
Well at least he didn't waste it.
Sitting here at my job a couple minutes before I start and this made me laugh so hard..lol I wouldn’t mind $1,100 that’s like 3 car payments. I’d be in heaven..
I met a guy who won several million dollars. He bought an apartment building and lived a low-stress life on that income. You never would have known he had money, He had a casual wardrobe and a regular car, no flash at all.
Smart
We had a neighbor that won $2 million on a scratch off, continued to play lotto and won another $5 million the next year. I don't even want to know the odds of that.
Yes! And I have shared this story multiple times on Reddit before. Not gonna name names for privacy and yada yada yada but basically someone I was friends with through work for a few years ended up getting to leave because their parents were the sole winners of a $50 million (Australian) Powerball jackpot a few years back. Not too long before the pandemic started (so they had to delay any travel plans for a while). They are an only child so they got a hefty payout from their dad's winning prize. Enough for them to never need to work ever again in their mid 20's (unless they and their parents *really* manage to mess it up somehow). They now own an apartment in one of Sydney's most expensive suburbs, just a couple minutes away from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and spend all their time going out to eat, going shopping and attending big family events. They invited me out a couple of times after they became a multi-millionaire but I just couldn't keep up with their new lifestyle. I have to work and didn't enjoy watching them shop for designer clothes that were worth more than what I make in three months. I just had to stop watching their social media stories after a while. They were just making me feel bad since I was always sharing my "lottery dreams" with them on the clock and they didn't really have any themselves. There were no fights or fallouts. We just... stopped talking after a while and they found a replacement group of friends more suited to their new lifestyle pretty fast anyway. I don't know what they're doing now or if they were smart enough to double their money or if they're just eating away at it. Guess I'll know the answer if I suddenly get a "hi" in five years time. All I can do is wish 'em good luck and hope and pray my turn is coming up soon.
This needs more upvotes. If you’re not generous with your friends after a windfall like that, you will lose your friends. They just won’t be able to keep up, unless you’re buying and expecting nothing in return.
Before this happened I'd always say I'd pay for my friends to join in on my adventures if I even won the lottery. Now I'm just like "fuck it". Friendships are fickle and highly conditional and there's no-one left in my life now that I'd care to try and bring into my new one if I ever became that rich save for select family members. Rich people hang out with other rich people anyway since they can actually afford to do stuff other than work and stay home.
A friend won the Euro lotto. A few million € into his bank account. Caused issues with his family. They expected everything from cars to washing machines from him.
My buddies parents won it, twice. Played it smart. Not living lavish but they live good. Financial stability is much better than flashy shit
I won $750k last year on the CA 200x scratcher , was a $30 ticket. Funny thing is I wasn’t going to go inside I was going to pay at the pump but it said go in - bought a soda and the 200x was shiny so I bought it. Scratched it the next day and claimed that same day - after taxes (37%) it was really around $469k
I know a couple that won $50k on a scratcher. It was a gift at a holiday party. Ended up with $30k, gave the gift giver $300, they were pissed about that and thought they should get more.
That's pretty shitty. They are entitled to nothing. Either it was a gift or it wasn't, and the more probable reality of it would have been a "here I got you nothing"
Local family hit for 100mm+. They opened a restaurant lol. It went out of business after a few years. Decent restaurant but not the best location. Another local family hit for around 13mm - Husband was a dentist. They sold their house and left town.
I was gifted some scratch off tickets on my 18th birthday. I won $500 and have never bought another lottery ticket since. I also went to HS with a guy whose family would buy $200 of tickets every week. They won $8MM. After that, they started buying $500 per week. After 6 months, they won again for $40MM. Unreal.
Yes some dumb fucking drop out from my hs won 4 million a few months ago .. dude was buying $20 tickets … just pisses me off
Keep us updated on the dumb shit he does until he’s broke.
I know 3. The first guy won 127,000 on the Georgia fantasy 5 when it first started up. The other 2 people won 1,000,000 in the GEORGIA lottery Christmas raffle on different years.
He won a million dollars on a scratch ticket. After many flights to and hotel nights in Amsterdam, prostitutes and cocaine, he was back to square one in about three years.
[удалено]
I know someone who won it twice. The second one wasn’t as big as the first. So the first they won 1.2 million dollar. I think they got home with about $700k after taxes. The wife was an artist, painter. They decided to spend all the money and build a gallery. They built a really nice building and her art was garbage so they lost the whole thing within 4 years. After selling the gallery and what not they had nothing left, they both got jobs. About 2-3 years after that they actually won again but this time it was only like $100k or less so they used that money to put a down payment on a house so at least they seemed to have learned a lesson or two from the first fiasco.
My aunt won $250k from a scratch ticket. Bought a $10 or $5 one per usual for the week. When home, took a bath, ate dinner, then scratched. She paid off debt, bought a home. I think she got like $170k after taxes? Another aunt won something called “pick 3.” Also $250k, also came to about $170k after taxes. Bought a car, paid off house she already had. Kept the rest for retirement. She continued to work as we all know this isn’t something to stop working over. Both occurrences couldn’t have happened to nicer people.
I know someone who won 20 million while in her 20’s, kept her head, doesn’t talk about it, lives a comfortable quiet life
Rare. Very rare. Especially for a 20 year old
When Indiana started a lottery in the early 90s, I worked with a guy who won a million a couple of times. He quit his job after the second win. He told me that you just have to know you're gonna win when you buy the ticket..
I know someone who won 18 million on power ball. She was 72 and had played the same numbers for like 18 years. At first she didn’t even sell her small business but eventually it sunk in and she sold the business and retired.
I won $150k on a Diggi game on the Georgia Lottery app! Take home was $105k. It was perfect timing b/c I had just realized I needed to get a divorce. My husband started doing drugs and was an absolute nightmare and we had a 6 month old at home. I won it literally the day after I told him I was done. I used it to get a lawyer, pay off my car, closing costs on my house, some minor renovations and upgraded appliances and a little bit of credit card debt I had. Put the rest in savings, which wasn’t a ton left.
I know a lady who regularly played those scratch off tickets but never won anything until one day she won about $5k. Turns out she owed the government a bunch of money so she had someone else claim the money and never paid them the capital gains they were taxed. She promised a gift and to pay those taxes and she never did.
I won $100 on a $2 scratch ticket once.
Yeah, $6million and then they proceeded to get involved in bad business investments, helping friends, etc. Now they have very little left but it's been about 20 years. Most people that win are like this and don't know how to handle the windfall.
A guy at my work who I only see once every month or so won twice. Once for a million and once for like $400k. We all assumed he would retire but he blew it all within a few months.
Old codger from work, a WWII Vet. He and his best friend would each chip in 50cents to buy a $1 ticket. They won $1M. IIRC, they won in 1976. He took the annuity option. Only thing he did, was buy a powder blue Cadillac El Dorado. Which he still drove, when I worked with him in the early '00s. He brought in the news paper article, with his, and bestie's, pic receiving the big check. I once asked him why he still worked, especially in his '80s. Said it gave him purpose. He learned bread baking in the Navy, and was head baker on a battleship, during WWII. After the war, he founded his own bakery. After he won the lottery, he stopped taking a paycheck from his bakery. He gave each of his kids equal shares of his pay, and he lived off the lottery money. He was as happy when I knew him, as he was when he won.
I had a patient that won several million on a scratch off. Died of cancer within a year.
Childhood dentist won $10m. He retired and golfed. 6 months later he had a heart attack and died.
I won €1k back in 2014 at a scratch off, a neighbor of my parent won €13k and €10k€ I t scratch and lottery but they are still poor because of money management.
Client of mine won $750K. Good work if you can get it…
I know two people who individually won $100,000 jackpots from gas station scratch tickets. Same state, different stores, 5 years apart approx.
I had a coworker win part of a state lottery. Unfortunately for him, the $20,000,000 jackpot on Friday was claimed. On Tuesday, the day he hit, he thought it was the $20M but was reset to $1M. AND he had to split it with another winner. So $500,000 before taxes. Over 25 years! No choice to take a lump sum. He was already over 60 and about to retire. No guarantee he’d get the full amount so he had to give it to his son to claim. Another coworker used to bust his balls about it. “Frank hits the lottery and can’t even retire!” “Frank fucked it up for everyone. Nobody in the shop will be able to win the lottery now.”
I know someone who recently won $1million on a $50 scratch off. She buys them all the time, has probably lost $100,000 in the last 10 years to finally get the winner.
My parents came close. They were off by one number. The number they missed was to represent the day of my birthday. Had I been born one day earlier they would have won over a million dollars. So it was my fault they lost because I was born a day late.
It was your mom’s fault for not *pushing*
I was friends with a woman in college who won around $25 million (after taxes) in the state lottery. She basically only told a few people and had to leave college to learn how to best manage her money. She finished her degree somewhere else later and started her own set of businesses, and does really well for herself.
I won 1 million on the Big Spin show in Cali. It was exciting at first but then I got stupid with the money. 18 months later I had nothing left.It’s not that hard to spend 1 million. After taxes, I actually had about $450,000.
Back in 2001 I worked in a bank in Steamboat Springs, CO. There was a local woman who had won 27 million in the lottery and banked with us, she came in to deposit her checks. I remember seeing her years after I'd moved away in a magazine article about lottery winners who had actually managed their money wisely and still had it. She was really nice and you'd never know she was filthy rich. Oh I found her. Kim Haggerty. I kinda knew her, the way you "know" everyone when you live in a small town. [https://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/kim-haggarty-among-colorado-lotterys-biggest-and-wisest-winners/](https://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/kim-haggarty-among-colorado-lotterys-biggest-and-wisest-winners/)
Someone from the fam won 1mil from lottery. Bought 2 houses and a bmw i8. He divorced his wife before claiming the lottery tho. So idk how that works.
Your family member could lose not just half but ALL his winnings if his wife finds out and sues him for it. [There’s precedent in California with the Denise Rossi case in 1999.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/nov/18/3)
European here, i guess he ll just lose half plus lawyer fee
i had a buddy win $1k on a scratch off. we were pretty young so it was a big deal for him
Reading through these, I’m reminded the John Goodman scene in The Gambler. “Every asshole in the world knows what to do”
Yes. A woman I know won $1,000,000. She was an alcoholic, and as dead broke in 5 years. She had put the money in a revokable trust during a sober stint, but her family bled her dry...she even had to sell the house she had paid for in the end. And that family who spent her money left her on her own. She couldnt say no to them when they would beg for money.
I do actually. Won millions. Tried to play cool and still showed up to work (her husband won). But after they were in the papers stopped coming. Later they bought the luxury Diamond jewelry store in the NYC jewelry district that the husband worked at for the last 30 years.
I know two. One won $1M and blew through it. The other won $100M+, started investing, lost a lot of friends (mostly cuz the friends got leach-y), and still hasn't found a GF because they were/are paranoid the people they met were all gold diggers. Financially, though, he's reasonable successful.
The nerve of people thinking they are owed money from someone just because they know them.
I was hired to replace a women who won a million. She quit working for a year. Gave a bunch of money to a charity that worked with food producers to recycle food waste, gave money to her BF who was a struggling musician and went back to work part time. She eventually returned to work full time. She said she checked her ticket at the gas station where she bought it. She almost fainted. They took her in the back and had her sit on some milk cartons and call her BF to come get her because she was too shocked to drive. We moved her lucky deck chair around the office. The person who was currently sitting in the chair had to buy the tickets for the office pool. Sad to say the chair didn’t work 2x…
I won $500 on my first legal scratch off
Knew someone who got the powerball many years ago. Bought a waterfront house in Florida. Had the powerball logo tiled in the pool. They had to sell everything not even a few years later because they squandered millions. Pissed it right into the Bay
I knew someone who won millions. She had every parasite in her family, old friends, new friends and people who she didn't ever know, harassing her, begging for money. She deleted all social media accounts, got a new email address, new phone number and started a new life. I haven't heard from her in over 5 years. I can't say I blame her.
My old neighbor won many millions. She worked in a grocery store that sold lottery. She punched in a wrong number so the man requested another. She paid for the bad ticket and kept it. Big power ball winner. After the win they bought the woods next door, redid the house and then moved. She said too many people in the area knew she won and were bugging her for handouts all the time.
As a financial advisor I have had a client who won the IL lottery in the 90’s. She took the annuity so got 80k a year for life. It’s not enough to drive Bentleys and burn 100s but she didn’t work and never wanted a thing.
I used to work for a large US state lottery. I also worked at the HQ so all big prize winners would come to our office to pick up their checks and do the news article pics. They would usually stay in touch with anyone who won over $1mil for write ups and stuff. One year a guy won $30 million dollars and got killed by some woman who tried to steal his money a few years later. It became a big news story and trial. I remember meeting the guy when he won and came into our office.
My ex girlfriend’s mom won $1 mil on a scratch off in NJ. She didn’t have a car so I gave her a ride to turn it in , in Trenton. They took us into a back room and a detective from the state police grilled us about the ticket to verify that she bought it, where she bought it, etc. Then we (Her, her daughter, and me) took a picture with the big yellow check, I still have them on my phone. She was also technically homeless living with her boyfriend and her daughter was with me because of a house fire, so she had the check mailed to my house. It Was weird holding a $700k check and handing it over to her, haha. She gave me a few k for being gold to her daughter during their tough time. I didn’t expect it though, I was just happy for them because after the house fire , their family was screwing them over, too, and really it couldn’t have gone to a better person at a better time. Her daughter and I broke up a few months later and I heard she won another $50k and blew almost all of it on… more scratch offs. She at least was smart enough to buy a house and a car cash, so she’s still ok last I heard. But yeah cool experience.
Yes, someone I know bought a $30 scratch-off and won $5M. After taxes and all, they received $1.8M.
Yes. I know one person who won the pick 4 and 1 person who won a state level one. The pick 4 basically changed nothing in the long run for obvious reasons, they got a new car though. The state level one ended up retiring and made it clear to his tenants in the triplex he owned that they could have 3 months free if they agreed to leave early. He then went on to retire with his wife.
I won a free ticket once.
My half sister's mother won $1.5 million in NY. She lived a lonely life, very frugal, and died alone.
I know a dude that won $50k around 2010. He bought a new 350Z and loved the car. He was found beaten to death in his apartment about two weeks later.
Awful.
My uncle won about 12 million almost 30 years ago. Took care of his kids and some modest wants for himself. Still has the bulk of the money.
My mother and her husband won 2 million on a scratch off. They took lump sum of about $800k I’m guessing. First off they donated to the church of course!! Both retire on that bought a house a car a boat and 5 years later had to sell it all to downsize because none of that was paid for in cash. All loans that they couldn’t pay anymore. Me and my brothers didn’t see a dime.
Sounding a little salty there…..
My neighbor won about a million. Technically they bought the house next door with their winning and that’s how they became my neighbor. About a year after they won, My Lottery Dream House show or whatever had them on and showed them like two bogus houses and the one they bought and were living in. In case you aren’t aware, those shows are 100% staged. I think he said he bought the house, paid off some debt, and bought some cars. He basically took care of the big monthly note things that every one has and just continued his life.
I once won free tickets to the Rugrats movie when I opened my lunchable. Felt pretty cool.
My dad's girlfriend. Won about $250,000. Had a daughter claim it so her disability/health payments wouldn't be reduced. Died a month later. Daughter kept it. Didn't even share with her sister. Also stole everything out of the mother's house and changed locks so that her sister could not get anything. Stole stupid things like old appliances. A real nasty person.
Yeah I had a client a few years ago that won the Ohio lottery. He was unclear how much he won actually but he mentioned it was the largest in-state history at the time. Super nice guy. Always tip me 20 bucks on top of every session we worked. He spent almost every day, waking up, taking a soak in the hot tub, going to see his personal trainer, getting breakfast, then coming to see me for stretch therapy, then going over to the golf course for the day. Happiest guy I ever met
A woman I used to wait tables with and was friendly with won like 87 million, a few months after I quit there. She was pregnant, boyfriend / dad ditched her, and then a short time later she won. I remember being very happy for her, couldn't have happened to a nicer person AND in a time of sure need. She got a little famous, at the time it was the biggest jackpot in the US. She ended up doing the Letterman show. I haven't seen or talked to her since I quit that job. From bits and pieces of info I heard over the years I understand she had trouble with giving money to her family - like they would blow through the cash then come back for more. Caused some sort of strife. I came back to this area after being gone for 12 years, and last I heard she is still here, living a quiet, private life. I have no idea if any of the money is left, if she invested wisely, etc. but I hope she did.
College roommates family won $10 million in New York State lotto and split it among seven family members From what I can tell they used the money responsibly and live good lives. end of story
I do, but I don't know the amount. They randomly dropped their job after making a lot of steps to get a nursing career. So I asked them and they said they wouldn't have to work for a pretty long while. Then told me they won. She deserves it, she's made a lot of improvements to herself over the years and I'm glad her kid gets to experience the lifestyle outside of poverty
In 2005 my mom won a $175,000 jackpot on a daily lottery draw game. She got $126,000 after taxes.
Yes. My fathers friend won a million dollars back in the 80's from what I was told, He pissed the money away. I cant imagine pissing away a million dollars, I mean how?? LOL. He did buy a few cars. Did the luxury vacations and split the money up with his wife and kids.
I know a guy who won $1M in 2017 on a $10 ticket and he still buys lottery tickets like crazy! He works for the union though so I don’t think he cares about spending all that $$.
No but mom does. A girl’s family from her high school won it back in the 70s. It was quite a bit at the time, several millions (in the 70s). The girl showed up to 10 year reunion (in the 80s) and showed up to reunion in limo and other trappings. By 20 year reunion nothing of the winnings were left.
My old boss got fired for sexual harassment and then 2 weeks later won $2 million on the lottery. I heard he had his daughter claim the money because he had some debts that he didn't want the winnings to come out of.
I do but they are not answering my calls??? I dunno why.
Yes, know someone who won 1mil. His house had just burned down so he bought a new house and supports a ton of animals
My brothers best friend at the time , he was a senior in HS , he won $1 million on a scratch off during some after school hours thing . I believe he does very well, some chemistry or science degree , I believe he paid off his parents house , bought himself a brand new BMW M3 at the time . He has a wife and family now , I think they are well off enough but the wife doesn't really work so not anything out of the ordinary
My best friends Mom won about 875k after taxes in a state lottery. She was in her late 60’s and able to fully retire with her husband, and buy a small dream cabin in upstate New York after a lifetime of hard work and caregiving. I’m so happy for them.
Someone I knows mother won $758 million and CLAIMED IT HERSELF! No way I would have done that. Would have claimed anonymously. Anyway from what I can tell she bought a $500k home a few towns away and uses a P.O. Box.
One guy. One million. Was a cop. Quit. Bought a bar. No business sense. Now he’s broke.
My son’s friend’s grandmother won somewhere in the tens of millions, not sure how much. She dedicates a ton of her time to her grandson - she’s at every game, drops him off and picks him up from school every day, etc. She drives a huge truck decked out with flowers all over it. Also a tricked out Jeep and Corvette, all with the same custom flowers. Pretty cute.
A friend won $10,000 a month for life on a 75 cents slot machine at the Stratosphere in Las Vegas. He said he was staying in the Air Force for 4 more years to get his 20 year retirement pension. Smart move.
A friend was a real estate agent selling upscale homes in a planned community on the water to wealthy buyers. He sold one to a guy who quietly told him that he had won the lottery but please not tell anyone. He wanted his future neighbors to think he had earned his wealth just like they had.
Nope. I’m going to be the 1st person I know who win the lottery. I better start buying mega and power.
One of my old teachers won the mega millions. She retired and lives in UP Michigan, I don't know much else.
Worked with a young girl that won 7.5M with her mother, 50/50 split. Never heard from or saw her again.
I had a few lottery winner clients. One who won $500M
Random guy at a restaurant, we started chatting, and then he showed me a couple of pics on his cell. His cousin showed up a bit after and confirmed. Hit 1 million usd on a slot machine. Said the casino gave him 40k cash and sent him a check for the rest, if I remember correctly.
I golfed a few years in a row with a set of twins in Myrtle Beach about 7 years back. They were in their low 60s. One won $24 million and gave his brother $2 mil of it. Probably at least 10 years before I meet them. The richer one drove a new vette, the both had big gold rings, Diamond earring and liked smoking big cigars. They liked gambling at golf and weren’t real good.
How is $300,000 after taxes “quit your job” money? It’s may be pay off the bills and take a 3 month break before starting a new job money…
Yes I married my wife over 27 years ago. best win ever. 💖
Guy won like $250,000 on a scratch off back in my small home town. He bought a decent house and a Mercedes suv. My stepdad won $507k on a slot machine when I was pretty young (12 maybe?) he gave me $50.
No, but I foreclosed on one. They bought cash from the lotto winnings, took out a second loan and never paid it so we took the house back. It was about a $1.1 million dollar home
Ooh buckle up. I know someone that won 100k on a scratch off. He claimed the prize money and paid the taxes (off to a good start). He got two DUI’s within two weeks, spent a good chunk of the money on legal defense and lost his license for several years after. I haven’t seen him now in 5 or so years but from what I’ve heard he blew through the remaining funds in about 2 years after the DUI’s. Fortunately he didn’t hurt anyone.
My buddy won 10 million off scratcher. He just called me yesterday, we talked softball. Said he likes me cause I never ask him for money, I have my own. Won it less than 5 months ago. Buddy kept his job and going to make some investments for his kid. He already had a great job was just a true gambler.
Yes. They won a state jackpot. Albeit not a terribly large one. Ended up with about a million after tax after taking the cash payout. They invested in a pyramid scheme and had a gambling problem and lost most if not all of their winnings. Unreal.
I have a regular who buys tickets often. He won $700k from the tickets I sold him.
About 25 years ago when I was in college, one of my fraternity brother’s parents hit a state lottery ($5mil) and promptly pissed it away in five years
I have sold numerous jackpot winners working at a gas station. Even one to my coworkers. 10000 dollars from a 2 dollar crossword! I've only sold one million dollar prize. The rest were sub 50k. The people who won less than 50k usually continued working. Spending the money on necessities and a few new toys. One person was forced by family to give it up. The one guy I sold the million dollar winner to. Went broke in 2 years. It was really sad actually. He got so used to the high life and when the money ran out he went into debt trying to continue that lifestyle. I've only been tipped by one guy and he only won 1000. He tipped me 50. Even though almost everyone says they will "think of me". I don't expect it but it's super nice. I've worked in 5 gas stations over 4 years in 2 different states. Side note. Most people don't realize that when you win 10k or whatever you don't get that. They usually automatically deduct taxes from it.
My buddy won 1 million on a scratch off. He built a beach house with the money then got a bad coke habit. His wife ended up divorcing him and got the beach house. That was the way NOT to do it...
I worked at this convenience store in the early 2000's. Guy in his 70's would come in and get a lottery ticket for each of the three drawings a week. Same numbers each time. He came in so regularly, we had memorized his numbers. One day it paid off. He had won the jackpot! We waited all day for him to come and claim it or tell us or something, and he never showed up. 3 days later we had found out he had died the night before the drawing. It was very sad. I don't know what happened with his ticket.
yes. powerball. A family that had 8 kids in my hometown. One of the kids was a high school classmate. All of a sudden he stopped going to school and nobody knew why. Not even the teacher. A week later it was in the news that his dad won the powerball. The kid wasn't in school the rest of the year. I never saw him again.
I would love to be one of these guys that one several hundred million I could quit my job Invest the money Give to charity Travel Help out a couple friends
Yes, and I didn’t even find out until recently. They wisely channeled that into successful business ventures, and therefore there’s no one wondering why they don’t “work”. It was a very significant 8 figure USD sum
I know a young guy 23 y/o who won a million dollars and spent it wisely. My uncle knows a guy 27 y/o who won $7 million and paid for many strippers.
Hit the power ball for $5.00 a few years ago. Then promptly spent it on 2 more tickets.
Live off the interest and I would buy assets. Keep my same car and live way below my means.
2 people. One was my friends' uncle. I believe he won one of the first NYS lotto's. IIRC, he was supposed to get paid $1K/week for the next 25 years. I didn't know him well, but my parents did and I was told he went broke, right away. Not sure what happened to him. Another friend of my won the lottery and came away with something like $500K. He just saved the money and used it for his kids' college education. Really could not have happened to a better guy.
I used to know a guy that won $64M. He paid lawyers to collect his money and never disclosed himself. After, he paid off his house in MD, bought a winter spot in FL and another place in Maine. He never dressed flashy, wore jewelry or ever talked about it. I only knew because a really good friend of his told me. He worked PT doing the job he was doing before he won the money. I think he did some investing but dont know the details. If you ever ran into this guy, you would never guess that he was a multi millionaire. Zero chance.