About 70 percent of lottery winners go broke

By Hum
in Real World News

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Grand Master

Hum

Posted
Posted

History is replete with lottery winners whose lives have gone sour after becoming rich.

The National Endowment for Financial Education cites research estimating that 70 percent of people who suddenly receive a large sum of money will lose it within a few years.

In 2002, Jack Whittaker - already a millionaire - won $315 million in a lottery in West Virginia. Just four years later he claimed to be broke. Whittaker gave away millions of dollars, but people also stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from him and he lost a granddaughter to a drug overdose.

Last year, Urooj Khan died just two months after winning $1 million in the Illinois lottery, from what initially appeared to be natural causes. Toxicology tests run at a relative's request found cyanide poisoning. Police are now investigating his death as a homicide.

Maintaining a stable life such as the Hills are attempting is difficult, said Don McNay, author of "Life Lessons from the Lottery" who has studied winners of big money for 30 years.

"They are beyond exception," McNay said.

Most ordinary people who come into large sums of money become victims of their own lack of financial savvy or discipline, McNay said. People also come under great pressure from friends, relatives and a host of others wanting money.

Missouri Lottery spokeswoman Susan Goedde said the vast majority of lottery winners from the state were "doing great" and if they were good money managers before, they would be after.

"Circumstances may change, they may not work anymore and they have the freedom to travel," Goedde said. "But if they clipped coupons before winning the lottery, they will do it after winning."

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Grand Master

theyarecomingforyou

Posted
Posted

It's not surprising at all. It has been said if all the money in the world were equally distributed that within a short period those who were rich would return to affluence and those who were poor would return to poverty.

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Grand Master

spenser.d

Posted
Posted

I just would not tell anyone.

In some states, it goes on public record, so it's not your choice.

I don't know why people don't just get a financial advisor. Even if you invest a lottery jackpot conservatively, you'll get an upperclass paycheck from the returns and you can say you can't easily access the millions to anyone who comes asking.

Mentor

Boxster17

Posted
Posted

Can't really say I'm surprised that many people mismanage their winnings. Shame that so many end up in the situations that they do but hard to feel sorry at times knowing how much they had to work with. I just can't imagine blowing the amount of money that some of these people have.

Grand Master

123456789A

Posted
Posted

In some states, it goes on public record, so it's not your choice.

I don't know why people don't just get a financial advisor. Even if you invest a lottery jackpot conservatively, you'll get an upperclass paycheck from the returns and you can say you can't easily access the millions to anyone who comes asking.

Well if you're really that bad with money, maybe instead of taking the lump sum, just do the annuity instead. I know it's probably not as great of a deal, but at least the winnings would be spread out over time so you won't blow it all on a Bugatti Veyron that you can't even drive properly.

Grand Master

Hum

Posted
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Posted

In some states, it goes on public record, so it's not your choice.

I don't know why people don't just get a financial advisor. Even if you invest a lottery jackpot conservatively, you'll get an upperclass paycheck from the returns and you can say you can't easily access the millions to anyone who comes asking.

Doesn't matter.

Most friends and relatives are not going to research you.

My name is not unique -- I could claim it was someone else.

Phone numbers and addresses would be changed.

You don't have to allow anyone into your home.

And I'd move far away from my old life.

Veteran

IceBreakerG

Posted
Posted

I'll just leave this. Proverbs 13:11 (NLT) - Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time.

https://www.bible.com/bible/116/pro.13.nlt

Grand Master

LUTZIFER

Posted
Posted

It's not surprising at all. It has been said if all the money in the world were equally distributed that within a short period those who were rich would return to affluence and those who were poor would return to poverty.

Yep that makes total sense. I agree.

Mentor

Night Prowler

Posted
Posted

History is replete with lottery winners whose lives have gone sour after becoming rich.

The National Endowment for Financial Education cites research estimating that 70 percent of people who suddenly receive a large sum of money will lose it within a few years.

In 2002, Jack Whittaker - already a millionaire - won $315 million in a lottery in West Virginia. Just four years later he claimed to be broke. Whittaker gave away millions of dollars, but people also stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from him and he lost a granddaughter to a drug overdose.

Last year, Urooj Khan died just two months after winning $1 million in the Illinois lottery, from what initially appeared to be natural causes. Toxicology tests run at a relative's request found cyanide poisoning. Police are now investigating his death as a homicide.

Maintaining a stable life such as the Hills are attempting is difficult, said Don McNay, author of "Life Lessons from the Lottery" who has studied winners of big money for 30 years.

"They are beyond exception," McNay said.

Most ordinary people who come into large sums of money become victims of their own lack of financial savvy or discipline, McNay said. People also come under great pressure from friends, relatives and a host of others wanting money.

Missouri Lottery spokeswoman Susan Goedde said the vast majority of lottery winners from the state were "doing great" and if they were good money managers before, they would be after.

"Circumstances may change, they may not work anymore and they have the freedom to travel," Goedde said. "But if they clipped coupons before winning the lottery, they will do it after winning."

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Yep, I can attest to that fact. I Won $15 dollars yesterday, and I am broke again today :(

Grand Master

Astra.Xtreme

Posted
Posted

Well if you play the lottery then obviously you're bad with money to start with but just happened to get lucky so not surprising.

You can maybe make that generalization to people who play the lottery daily or maybe weekly.

When Powerball hits a couple hundred million, sure I'll throw in $20. Same do millions of others who can manage their money just fine.

Personally, if I won the lottery, I'd move away and disappear off the radar for a while. During that time I'd probably invest it all and go back to school and get a few degrees in the mean time. After then I'd move back, start a business, and hope nobody cares anymore.

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