Dreams And Odds: Here's How Hard It Is To Win $1.55 Billion In The Mega Millions Jackpot
The incredible rise of the Mega Millions jackpot to a stunning $1.55 billion has sparked international interest. However, a complex network of chances underneath the attraction makes triumph an extremely tough task.?
You have very little probability of winning the lottery. After there was no clear winner, The Mega Millions jackpot?increased to an estimated $1.55 billion on Friday night.? ?
If someone wins it all in the next Mega Millions drawing on Tuesday, it will be one of the largest in US lottery history.?However, expect to wait for a new tax rate. The chances of winning a Mega Millions jackpot, whatever its size, are approximately one in 302.6 million.?
It's Hard To Win Mega Millions: Here's Why?
Experts advise against spending all your money on lottery tickets due to the nearly impossible probability of winning.?If you decide to play, remember what you can afford—and perhaps consider alternative places to put your money, even if it's just a few dollars at a time.
Here are some facts concerning your chances of winning the lottery:
Winning The Lottery Is Impossible: What's More Likely??
Numerous uncommon occurrences are more likely than winning the Mega Millions or Powerball jackpot. A common example is the likelihood of being hit by lightning once in your lifetime, which is one in 15,300.
Even if you purchased a lottery ticket for every drawing for the next 80 years—two times a week for Mega Millions and three times a week for Powerball—you would be significantly less likely to win than to be struck by lightning once in your life, according to Syracuse University mathematics professor Steven Diaz.?
"A slightly darker example," Kovach continues, "is comparing the odds of winning the lottery to being in a fatal car accident on the way to the store." "Assume you have to drive half a mile to buy your lottery ticket, for a total round-trip distance of one mile." "You're about four times more likely to die in a car accident on the way to buy your?ticket?than you are to win," he says.
Of course, Mega Millions and Powerball also have layers below the top jackpots, with the lowest prices beginning at $2 and $4, respectively. The odds of winning any prize in each game are approximately one in twenty-four.?
Is It Harder To Win The Lottery?
Yes. Winning the lottery has become more complicated in recent years, driving jackpots to grow larger and larger — on purpose. Such large jackpots are determined by arithmetic and more complex odds.?
The Powerball lottery increased the odds of winning from one in 175.2 million to one in 292.2 million in 2015. Two years later, Mega Millions was introduced, increasing the odds of winning the top prize from one in 258.9 million to one in 302.6 million.?
Since those adjustments, the highest lottery jackpots in the United States have been won.
What Is The Real Amount Of Money Taken Home By Jackpot Winners?
When a person wins a lottery jackpot in a game such as Powerball or Mega Millions, they have two choices: an annuity payable over 29 years or a (slightly lesser) cash settlement.
For example, the predicted $1.25 billion jackpot for the?Mega Millions Friday drawing is the annuity option, while the cash value is over half that, at $625.3 million. The majority of jackpot winners choose cash.
Federal and state taxes will also reduce your take-home pay, with deductions based on where you live.
Is It A Good Investment To Buy Lottery Tickets?
Because winning is so unusual, experts argue that lottery tickets are bad investments — but remember that everyone's motivation for playing the lottery is unique. Some people may buy a $2 lottery ticket for fun and find gratification in "the excitement of thinking you might win,"?
Diaz added that, meanwhile, others may enter the lottery out of desperation or financial hardship, with experts noting that the effects have disproportionately harmed low-income neighbourhoods.
According to Lia Nower, a professor and head of the Centre for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University, the lottery has historically been a regressive tax on people experiencing poverty, meaning the people who can least afford to lose their money buy the most tickets.?
She stated that her "concern with the lottery is really more people who are buying it every day or two or three times a week" as opposed to those who buy one ticket as the jackpot approaches $1 billion.
A $2 ticket may seem like a lot, but it may build up over time for individuals who enter the lottery regularly. According to Kovach, alternative spending possibilities include opening an investment account that allows you to invest in tiny sums or purchasing fractional stock.
"In reality, it's probably best to diversify by something like an index fund — but if you're just starting out, I would... (suggest) putting it) in the stock market or something like that," he said. "You will most likely see a return over time."
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