Friday, March 28, 2008

I Win the Lotto, Now What?

On my daily drive to work, I would drive by the California Lotto billboard. This got me thinking, what should I do if I win? I know the common advice is to take the money and run, but why? Would I really end up with more money by taking the lump-sum instead of the annual payments?

Since I can be such a nerd, I created an excel spreadsheet that would calculate final take home pay (after tax) for any jackpot amount :) My calculation confirmed the common adage: Take the lump sum.

Here's a snapshot of the worksheet (click on the picture for larger size):


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

omg. that is nerdy :P But if I ever win the lotto, I'll refer to ur spreadsheet ;)