Annie Tsai

The October 11, 2023 Powerball was at $1.725 Billion with a BIG B. Can you even visualize what that  much money looks like? I certainly can’t. 

Granted, most winning lotto tickets will be in the range of a few hundred dollars to a few million dollars. The October 9 drawing had 3.7 million winning tickets at those lower levels, with one $2 million winner from Florida, and four $1 million winners in California, Oregon, Virginia, and Indiana. Depending on your local area’s cost of living, a $1 million pre-tax windfall can definitely pay off your mortgage, debts, and set you up with a nice little nest egg. Less so in California, but I’m also pretty sure that no one would turn down a $1 million lump sum pre-tax windfall. 

Out of curiosity, I asked my friends the very question: What would you do if you won the lottery? 

Surprisingly, the answers didn’t vary much by geography (responses came in from people across 10 states from the coasts to the midwest to the south), nor did they vary much by life stage. 

The top response was: They would pay off their home or if they didn’t personally have mortgage liability, the mortgage of their loved ones (parents, caretaker, grandparents, sister, brother, etc). Number two? Pay off all remaining debts. While yes, some people have had their student loan debt forgiven, a vast majority have not and it ranges from $75,000 to $600,000 (medical school). 

Truth be told, I don’t think I would pay off my mortgage, but I might pay the principal down to a point where my interest paid hit the maximum threshold for income tax deductions and then leave it at that. For the past few generations in the United States, owning a home has been and continues to be one of the most effective ways of reducing tax liability – I don’t think having more money changes the formula there but likely only increases your ability to leverage existing assets against future investments (yay, more liability on your balance sheet). I suppose the other thing to consider is the interest rate on your mortgage – if you secured one of those amazing sub-3% rates on a fixed 30-year mortgage, it may make more sense to keep it as is and put that money into a 4.75% annual percentage yield interest earning account. Then again, peace of mind in not having any debt is worth a whole lot to some people. Of course, with that much money at hand having a financial advisor (and lawyer) that you trust is going to be important, and they would be the people to help you build the right plan for your situation. 

I guess the big question (maybe for another piece) is why is “the system” designed to reward debt and leverage? 

Once all the debts have been cleared, then it looks like the answers to my question become a game of bringing dreams to life and investing in one’s community or causes they are passionate about. And they are beautiful dreams and important causes. 

Cat would donate a big chunk to a coastal farm non-profit called The Big Wave Project, where you can find her most weekends volunteering. 

Jeremy, who is passionate about fitness and health, would open a gym that would be free to people ages 17 and under so he could have a platform to teach fitness, self-confidence, and offer his community a safe place for kids to go after school. 

Catherine would invest in electrification, solar, and climate projects in states with high carbon output. 

Vicky would focus on reducing hunger worldwide. 

Peter would invest in charity endowments where he and his family could be active participants in the work.

Hedi would buy a theatre, bring together an ensemble and staff, and establish a universal basic income/stipend for all employed by her theatre so they wouldn’t have to hold a day job to pay the bills while they worked on their craft.

Deborah would do even more than she already does for the unhoused community (she really does spend hours every week packaging and delivering meals).

Michelle, who founded non-profit Techtonica,org, would give much of it away to organizations focused on planting trees, supporting BIPOC families in need of economic stability, housing the unhoused, bringing countries together to fight climate change, and much more. 

The list goes on, and the causes and passion projects were varied but also themed – helping each other and our planet. That gives me hope.

So now the same question is for you, reader. What would you do if you won the lottery?