Hit the Mega Millions jackpot? Here's some advice on what to do next
A drool-inducing $220 million is up for grabs in Tuesday night's Mega Millions lottery drawing. Before all that green goes to your head, we asked three Atlanta-based experts what should be the first five things on a lottery winner's to do list.
Barry Berlin, managing director of the Atlanta office of Atlantic Trust, a private wealth management firm and subsidiary of Invesco:
• Cold call successful people and ask them to recommend financial advisers. Hire a financial adviser, who doesn't work on commissions.
• Pick a place to park the money on the first day. Think safe, short-term and liquid instruments, such as Treasury bills. Don't put it all in a single financial instrument.
• Develop long-term plans for managing the money.
• Set a limit on immediate spending and don't go over it.
• Don't try to change everything about your life right away. "It takes time to get used to what the funds can do."
Sheryl Pressler, consultant and former chief investment officer of the nation's largest public pension fund, the California Public Employees' Retirement System:
• Keep quiet and don't rush to claim your winnings.
• Get a lawyer with expertise in handling lottery winnings. Consider putting ownership of the ticket into a limited liability corporation or partnership to limit potential tax liability and to obscure your identity.
• Don't change anything major in your lifestyle for the first year.
• Take courses to get educated about money management and investing.
• Hire a fee-based financial adviser who is at a reputable firm and experienced in handling large sums of money.
Stephanie Casteel, partner in trusts and estates for King & Spalding:
• Get an unlisted phone number before claiming the prize. A lottery winner she represented was inundated with calls, packages, flowers and balloons sent by financial advisers, people seeking money, etc.
• Put the unclaimed ticket somewhere safe, such as a safe-deposit box, until you are prepared to claim it.
• Hire a good tax or trusts and estates lawyer. Winnings can incur federal and state taxes of up to 41 percent, plus there can be additional taxes on gifts to people. Later, hire an accountant and a financial adviser. One financial adviser she's familiar with charged a flat $100,000 a year.
• Protect yourself from liability. Put ownership in a legal entity, such as a limited liability corporation to reduce potential liability from lawsuits and limit gift taxes.
• Be wary of friends. "Everybody has the next great deal."
Really good advise. I can think of a potential hazard on each one of these listed if you don't plan ahead. I guess protecting your investment (winnings) is the key, but most of all " Yourself ". Thanks Todd.
Joe
Good Info!!
Nice! Thank you.
Good advice.
thx....... good advice
Thanks
Okay, what about people who don't want to invest the money at all? Or, if you're really bad at money, just take the annuity.
Annuity is Great too. Age is a factor.
With the current mega jackpot this high it maybe better to take the Annuity.
Current mega jackpot 270 mil = 10+ mil /a year/26 year.
Less pressure, Money keeps coming in.
control spending, keep a budget
Say to moochers"money tied up"
Less big investment mistakes( no rush to invest) (avoiding scams) ( Current stock market is bearish )( Real estate balloon has popped )
Pay less taxes
I read most finanical advisors say take annuity.
It is clear that all of the advisors are biased toward fee based planners (I happen to not be a fee based planner, but my clients all know I do an excellent job for them).
So this is what I would do when I win the Mega Millions jackpot:
1) No need to cold call celebrities...I will meet with my Primerica RVP and invest a large portion of the funds in various load mutual funds.
2) Consult with my PLPP law firm about setting up trusts and go through estate planning. Have already determined I would claim the winning ticket in either a trust or LLC.
3) Get a PO box...for all lottery mailings.
4) Reinterview tax accountants.
5) Continue getting my free personal finance education through my trustworthy Primerica representative who happens to be paid based on commissions. FYI a person being paid via commissions isn't the problem; the problem is people making unsuitable recommendations merely to garner more commissions (i.e. a stockbrocker churning investments, a financial rep recommending an annuity when a rollover to an IRA fits the bill, etc.).
6) Set a budget but still buy desired auto, clothes and home.
Total BS........ Commision based Financial Planners are worse Thieves than Lawyers. They get their commissions upfont so why would they care if the investments they put you in lost you money. They already got paid........... On to the next sucker......... If you lose money they just blame it on market conditions, not their investment recomindations that they already got paid on.....this sounds like a spam for Primerica. Just my oppinion. Be very carefull investing a large sum of money. MY best advice. interview many so called financial planners, take you time, make them show you their track record. Heck with that kind of money ask for a guarrenteed return and see what they say.
Hoping to hit the big one on Friday!
goodluck to all,
Don
YES ...thanks Todd......this is the stuff i'm looking for,,,,just hope i get to use it someday............
NEVER take the annuity...regardless, that is just the dumbest thing to do and exactly what they want you to do.
HMMM.... You must love where you work. I have 2 issues wih your suggestion... a LOADED mutual fund as opposed to a no load mutual fund. Who says Primerica is better or as good as Vanguard and Fidelity? And yes I watch Suze Orman.
Of the 3 advisors I would actually want to work with either Sheryl or Stephanie. The answers are more in line with the way that I think. Yes you can find a great advisor but not everyone wants 20% returns. I wonder how it would be if i bought into AAA muni bonds for the first 5 years with a ladder maturity schedule and then after they all mature rethink how i want to invest. I would be happy with an income stream of 10k a month with the rest reinevested. I know the first thing I would buy for myself are bionic hearing aids to replace the ones I have.