How big a lottery jackpot would it take to make you "set" for life?

[Orrex]

I vote "Other." Actually, if I somehow scored a cool $200,000, I would consider myself set for life. It would handily clear out all my debts with a very tidy sum left over. Sure, I'd still need to work for a living, but then I'd be working for me, rather than for Sallie Mae, ABN Amro, Visa, et al...

How about you?

[terrya]

1. $1 Million

I would never have to work again. And have a reasonably comfortable life. I'm not wildly extravagant or anything.

[Orrex]

3. Whenever the jackpot gets huge and my office pools its money...

My boss helpfully points out that "you can't retire on a million dollars."

WTF? In that case, I can never retire at all, because I'm sure as shit not going to have $1M left over when I'm done working.

One million would absolutely be enough for me, but $200K would be nice, too.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

16. Right, as long as you didn't spend your principal, $1 million

would yield a minimum of $60,000 a year, probably more if invested right.

[IndianaJones]

2. I'll settle for a free ticket. I'm bucking the odds on winning one of those. nt.

[Orrex]

4. With that ticket, your odds of winning are just about the same as without it

Funny stuff, the lottery racket.

[ruiner4u]

5. right now id be grateful for 10grand...

it would shore up alot of problems...

[IndianaJones]

6. I hear that.nt.

[AllegroRondo]

9. 5 million, put in tax free municipal bonds

would give me an annual income of between $100-150K. Plenty enough for me.

[Orrex]

12. Hell, $500 would be sweet, but I'm talking "best-case" here

No way would I turn down $10K if someone were to stuff it into my pocket.

[ruiner4u]

15. I know what you mean... Ya hear that Warren Buffett? heh...

[Initech]

7. I'd say probably $7 mil

That would give me enough to stay in California, pay off all my debts, and be able to travel wherever and whenever I wanted to. I'm not a huge spender or anything but that would give me enough to live comfortably and not have to work.

[Orrex]

14. I've often considered $7M as a good sum

That way I could distribute a good bit to my family and to my wife's family and still have plenty for her, our children, and me.

[Omphaloskepsis]

8. Enough that I could get with two girls at the same time..

I don't know how much that would be.. But yeah, two girls at the same time.

[ruiner4u]

10. 50 bux worth of crack can do that....n/t

[grace0418]

24. "the kind of girls that will double up on a dude like you?"

I can't remember what amount he thought that would be.

[Lethe]

11. $150,000 I would be set for life

Maybe even less than that.

[edbermac]

13. 5 mil minimum.

I'd spend a mil on a place to live, some nice toys like cameras and computers, and a taste for the family. The rest goes in the bank where I can't get my hands on it too easily.

[ruiner4u]

17. the taxes on a million dollar home would eventually kill you...

[regularguy]

18. A few hundred thousand would do.

I don't want to sit on my ass for the rest of my life, I just want to worry less about $$. If my kids have to work for a living that's ok too.

[TommyO]

19. I picked 10 million, here is my reasoning

If you take the cash option, so you get the most money up front, the payout will be around $5 million, after taxes it would hover somewhere around 3.2 million. My first order of business would be to pay off my debt and buy the townhouse that I'm currently leasing and upgrade it to suit me (including an updated kitchen, wood flooring on the first level, and finish the basement off. I would also help my immediate family with a few things.

Even after that, I'll have a fairly large sum left, at that point I invest it and live off of the interest.

[Orrex]

20. Feh! Taxes are for little people

You're right, of course. I suppose that I was assuming a net take-home of the various listed sums.

Speaking generally, all I'm looking for finance-wise is enough so that I don't feel like I'm getting totally screwed by the end of every month. $200K would do that for me, but any amount above that would certainly be helpful!

[TommyO]

21. $200,000 after taxes would do me very well indeed.

$500,000 would get the debt erased, buy the townhouse, a new car, and allow me to buy 1/3 of my mom's house which would pay off her mortage

[DS1]

22. eighty two million three hundred four thousand seven hundred twenty one dollars and 14 cents

i've mulled over this for a while

[Orrex]

26. Pffft. You're waaaaaaay off.

:P

[grace0418]

23. Well, my husband and I have 12 siblings and 3 living parents between us.

I'd want to be able to set each of them up with a million bucks after taxes so they could do what they want with it and not feel like they had to come ask me for a loan. So I'm thinking $25M would be about right for that.

For me personally, I'd like enough to be able to travel, have a few modest places to call home (instead of one huge place, I'd rather have a few small places in different locations), and have a huge art studio. I have no idea what kind of money that would require, but I live pretty simply and have no desire for fancy cars, diamonds or $25,000 purses. Not that I wouldn't allow myself a few luxuries if I had the cash but shit like that seems so unnecessary to me. I would however totally want someone to clean my house. I HATE cleaning the house. And I would want to pay that person handsomely and give them insurance. Whatever amount would allow that scenario to come about is cool with me. $20M? I don't know.

Then I'd like to have enough to set up a huge charitable foundation to fund all my favorite causes. So I guess the sky is the limit on the amount because I would love my foundation to be extremely powerful.

[supernova]

25. I think $10 Mil and here's why

There's the take home pay issue if you take the lump sum, which I would. I'd want to do two things:

1) Get myself completely set. Repairs to this house including kitchen/livingroom completely redone, completely new second story with master bedroom suite, professional landscaping on the yard and new front entrance. Pay for it all in cash. No borrowing money. Set up a lifetime account for all living expenses so I don't have to worry anymore. Take a trip around the world for 6 months or more. (Would also consider donating this house to have as a haven for families of long term patients at Duke and UNC hospitals. I would buy a new house.)

2) Fully fund a foundation that focuses on the arts in schools and patient care for children w/ congenital heart defects.