Poll: Poll: The £1000 a week for life or 1million lump sump....

Would you take £1,000/week for life or a lump sum of £1,000,000?

  • £1,000/week for life

    Votes: 287 61.3%

  • £1,000,000 lump sum

    Votes: 181 38.7%
  • Total voters
    468

SPG

SPG

SPG

Soldato
Joined
28 Jul 2010
Posts
10,500
Going round the new articles now, and i see a great deal of people are hacking this 19yr old lass for going for the £1000 a week for life option.... She is 19 seems like the sensible option to me at her age.

Being an old git i would take the million and die go to die in Vegas :)
 
Interest rates aside, once she reaches 38, she'll be in profit.

E: profit as in more than a million. She's already in profit :p
 
The tax free status of the regular weekly payment makes it the better choice, despite the impact of inflation over the years.
 
BBC article says

  • If she chose the $1m lump sum and withdrew $52,000 a year, she would run out of money at the age of 83. Given Canadian life expectancy is 82, according to the World Bank, the withdrawals would last for her lifetime. However, it is important to note that the $52,000 would be taxable versus the tax-free weekly prize, which is the crucial point
 
Even at 40 i still would have taken the £1000 a week, that over £4000 a month which is nearly double what i earn now. And that's for life, a secure wage for life where i don't have to think about complex investments and just enjoy life.

You can easily blow the million on a bad investment and have nothing left
 
Reading the article yesterday I did wonder why taking $52,000 a year out of her bank account would be taxable?

Surely in Canada each time you go to the atm to take cash out of your bank account you aren't charged tax?
 
A quick online calculator for Canada shows she'd take about CA$38,000 a year home if she was taking out the $52,000 each year. I presume the idea of it being taxed comes from the $1,000,000 being sat in a savings account somewhere (earning interest) so you're taking out of that, and that's a taxable income?
 
I would go for the 1million at my age but at 19 I would go for 1k a week. At 19 you may be tempted to burn through 1 million in no time at all, choosing 1k a week gives you security for life.
 
I've yet to read up on the whole article and the implications of the tax etc.

Personally I would be tempted to take the full $1m as it would be enough to pay for a house outright and then have money left over to divide between savings, investments and spending money.

If it made more financial sense to take $1000 a week though then that would effectively be the same as being mortgage free, that's the one thing that I want to be in life.

Knowing that my house is my own would put me on such a stronger position, I would only need enough money to pay the bills, feed and clothe my family. Every penny that I earn after that is all my own.

For a 19 year old I think the weekly payments make most sense. Less chance of her blowing the lot or being exploited into giving it away. Being able to live your whole life completely debt free would be an amazing feeling.
 
Maundie said:
Reading the article yesterday I did wonder why taking $52,000 a year out of her bank account would be taxable?

Surely in Canada each time you go to the atm to take cash out of your bank account you aren't charged tax?
Click to expand...

Interest earned on savings is taxable income, perhaps this is what they meant? As withdrawing 52k a year from 1million without accruing interest would empty the account in 20 years
 
Another benefit of taking the monthly is being able to be generous without having to justify yourself to people begging cash off you. I'd quite like the option to be extremely well off in the same way as someone with high level job, without being a millionaire.
 
Definately 1,000 a week. Damn, 1,000 A WEEK for doing bugger all

ok, so not instant gratification like most gen-z's but definately the smarter choice

I would have said most gen-zs would have taken the million upfront, bought a big house, sports car, holidays, gadgets, clothes.....then in a couple of years started posting on social media "i'm skint, money ruined me, it's not my fault, blah, blah, blah"
 
Invertigo said:
Interest earned on savings is taxable income, perhaps this is what they meant? As withdrawing 52k a year from 1million without accruing interest would empty the account in 20 years
Click to expand...

Yes but it would be tax on interest earned not money withdrawn surely (that's what happens over here anyway)?
 
I can't see many reasons to not take the lump sum, perhaps being innumerate or lacking massively in self control, though even in the latter case you could whack it into a trust or something.

FBi7 said:
Interest rates aside, once she reaches 38, she'll be in profit.

E: profit as in more than a million. She's already in profit :p
Click to expand...

So back in the real world she won't be and it is obviously a silly choice.
 
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