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Charlie & Debbie

When You Win The Lottery Should You Take The Lump Sum Or Annuity Payments

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Author Charlie & Debbie

Well, there was no winner in the Powerball last night, probably because I didn’t enter (I forgot).  So, that means that Wednesday night’s drawing will be worth $1 billion.  Tonight’s Mega Millions is only worth a paltry $640 million. 😉  With all this up for grabs, really one one question need be asked.  “When I win, should I take the lump sum payout or the annuity payments?”

Never a bad idea to plan ahead, right?

The answer is…whatever you feel most comfortable with.  I’ve always thought the lump sum is the best idea.  Sure, you’ll wind up with roughly half or a little more than half of the total sum (after all the taxes, etc.), BUT you’d still have an insane amount of money.  And as the saying goes, it takes money to make money.  With this kind of bank balance, you can easily make some safe investments and recoup all if not more than was eliminated.

So what about the annuity payments?  The best part is that eventually, you will get the entire amount.  The check will be the same every year, no more no less.  The sum be paid out over a 30 year period, but you’ll get all of it.  Yes, you’d still have to pay taxes and depending on who you talk to, in the long run, you may actually pay more in taxes by taking the annuity route.

However, it was the 30-year-payout that always made me think lump sum.  None of us is promised tomorrow.  It would be just my luck to win a huge lottery.  Then, choose the annuity and collect my first check.  Then, the next day, a meteorite falls on me, and not only did I not get to enjoy my filthy richness, but Powerball or Mega Millions didn’t have to pay.  Or worse…Uncle Sam got to keep my money.  Come to find out, this is wrong!

According to The Rock Hill Herald, though many believe the government keeps the money, annuity payments are generally passed to a winner’s heirs if they die.  In this situation, the remaining assets are distributed to a living beneficiary, or to an estate where the money can be disbursed to a group of beneficiaries.

Decisions, decisions.  What will I do?  I guess I’ll have to let you know either tomorrow or Thursday. 😉

These Are the Top South Carolina Lottery Scratch Offs, Good Luck!

What would you do if you won big in the lottery? I know the shock may surprise us all and put us in a daze for a second, but at some point, we’ve got to spend the money. So, what are we buying first? Well, let’s start with finding a way to win the big prize first.

Lotto Edge is naming the top South Carolina lottery scratch-offs that you could play. Scratch-offs are some of the people’s favorites to play throughout the years. Nice and quick and either you win or you don’t but you find out pretty instantly. How do you pick which scratch-offs you play? Each scratch-off has its different odds of winning and it’s good to know those odds to be able to help better your chances to win. Check out what Lotte Edge is naming as the top South Carolina lottery scratch-offs. Here are 6 out of the 10 that have the best overall odds of winning. Check out the full list here and see which other scratch-offs aren’t listed below.

  • 6. 100X

    The 100X scratch-off is coming in at No. 6. The ticket costs about $1 each for you to be able to purchase to play. Your overall odds of winning are about 1 in 3.48. Not so bad, right? Win possibly $300,000 or more when playing this infamous scratch-off game in South Carolina. What would be the first thing you would purchase with that kind of grand prize?

  • 5. King's Ransom

    Why not play King’s Ransom up next? With King’s Ransom, you have a possibility with a 1 in 3.47 odds of winning this lottery game. The ticket costs only $10 so talk about profit margin if you win big with this scratch off. Might as well give it a try.

  • 4. $500,000 Multiplier Money

    Come on, $500,000 sounds like a good time! If you play the $500,000 Multiplier Money then you could really win big with this one. Only costing you $10 per ticket, you have the chance to win with a 1 in 3.44 odds of winning.

  • 3. Mighty Jumbo Bucks

    Coming in at No. 3 is another famous one that people love to play. The Mighty Jumbo Bucks scratch off is one of those ones that people love. Only $10 per ticket, you have the possibility to profit pretty BIG. You will have a 1 in 3.40 odds in winning this grand prize.

  • 2. $1,000,000 Bonus Multiplier

    The prizes are getting bigger and the odds are getting better. Spend just $10 and you have the chance to be a million-dollar winner. Now, a million dollars can really do some crazy things to your life. With a 1 in 3.23 chance of winning, a million dollars could be yours!

  • 1. Fastest Road to $2,000,000

    Now, if you thought a million was a great time then what about $2 million? That’s right, the Fastest Road to $2 million scratch off is the number one spot. With a 1 in 3.06 overall odds in winning, this could be the best chance for you to win big. It’s the #1 scratch off for South Carolina.

Charlie Nance is the Afternoon Drive co-host (along with his wife) of "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple have been with the radio station since 2006. Charlie has won the prestigious CMA (Country Music Association) Award for Radio Personality of the Year and has been a finalist for the Country Radio Hall of Fame four times. Prior to his time in Charlotte, Charlie (along with Debbie) spent more than a decade hosting successful morning radio shows in Greenville, SC; Augusta, Ga; and Birmingham, Al. As a content creator for Country 1037, Charlie writes about dream lottery windfalls, sports, restaurants and bars, and travel experiences in North and South Carolina.

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