Lottery Winners Not as Rich as They Seem

The mega millions jackpot was estimated at $640 million and if each of the winners took out the lump-sum payout, the checks would total about $150 million. After state and federal taxes are taken out, each winner would have about $100 million.

US News puts the winnings into perspective and compared to many of the billionaires on Forbes list. Each winner’s $100 million is not even two-tenths of 1 percent of Bill Gates’ estimated net worth — $61 billion.

So, the winners may not be the richest guys in the world, but the richest guys on the block? Maybe not in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. But even if the winners are not the richest on their block, the winnings should solve all of their problems and bring them happiness? Turns out that this may not be true either. Unfortunately, many jackpot winners end up more unhappy then they were before.

See Jim Salter & Michael Tarm, Mega Millions Winners are Rich, but not THAT Rich, US News, 2012.

Special thanks to David S. Luber (Attorney at law, Florida Probate Attorney Wills and Estates Law Firm) for bringing this article to my attention.