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Reader Poll preview: Lump sum or annuity payments?
This poll was suggested by long-time QoD reader Dolores, who tells us she was "a mile away and at most a day" from the recent record $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot, whose winning ticket was sold in Altadena, California; Dolores lives nearby in Pasadena and bought her tickets the day the jackpot was hit.
She writes, "How about a poll to find out how many QoD readers would take the lump sum of nearly $1 billion ($630 or so million after taxes) or the annuity payments of $63 million ($42 or so million after taxes) for 30 years?"
Good idea and here it is.
Of course, most winners of the large multi-state lottery jackpots opt for the lump sum, but this one is record-breaking, a monumental amount of money for a workaday lottery-ticket-buying guy or gal even to contemplate, let alone deal with. California allows Powerball and MegaMillions winners 12 months to claim their prizes, so whoever won the $2 billion plus has plenty of time to prepare to receive it.
There are many reasons on both sides of the lump-sum-or-annuity question, but initially anyway, we're thinking that we might just limit the poll to the two selections and leave the reasons for your choice to the poll's comment boxes.
On the other hand, if you want us to go into the pros and cons of each choice, let us know in today's comment boxes and we'll consider it.
The poll will run a week from today, November 30.
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