The odds of winning a lottery jackpot are incredibly low. However, playing the lottery often doesn’t increase your odds. Unlike winning the lottery with a single ticket, the advertised jackpot is the sum of annuity payments over decades. An alternative, larger lump-sum payout is far less likely. To keep jackpots growing, lottery operators reduce the odds of winning over time. This increases the jackpot size, thereby increasing the chances of winning.
The winning numbers were drawn on May 15, 2013, and the lucky winner was Dave and Erica Harrig of Omaha, Nebraska. After winning the lottery, the couple sprang into a new home, vintage cars, and a vacation to the Caribbean. However, these lottery winners don’t let the money stop them from living their life the way they do now. They remain active in their church and family, and they also teach their children to work hard.
While many people view lottery tickets as low-risk investments, the opportunity to win hundreds of millions of dollars is alluring. The lottery has been a popular form of entertainment for centuries, and winning the jackpot puts the winner in a higher tax bracket than they might have otherwise been in. Many state lottery systems use the money raised from lottery tickets to promote education, transportation, and tourism. Now, they hope increased national interest will help them raise even more funds for these causes.
When it comes to the tax implications of winning a lottery, it’s important to remember that most states tax lottery winnings. As such, you will owe approximately 24% of your prize in taxes. You can opt to have the IRS withhold some of the money you win in a lump sum, or choose to receive a lump-sum payout. You’ll be paying income tax on this money for the first year and then annuitize the payments over the course of twenty to thirty years.