I know that this is technically not a lottery question, it's about PCH Sweepstakes bankruptcy .

Reply #13

Lotto Motto — Fri, 29 May 2026 03:12:16 GMT

I also would have saved some money for a rainy day. There are companies that have existed for over 100 years that just went bankrupt recently. If I were a PCH winner I would have thought, If PCH ever goes bankrupt will I be in financial ruin? And saved some money.

Reply #12

KY Floyd — Thu, 28 May 2026 05:27:11 GMT

He bought a house using a mortgage -- moron!

I've got a suspicion he's not the best decision maker out there, but a 30 year mortgage at 2016ish rates may be a very sensible decision, especially if you're borrowing about 500k. Most of the 30k in annual payments would be deductible interest for the first few years. That turns a rate of 3.5% into an actual cost of perhaps 2.6%, and it frees up a bunch of money for investing if you're smart enough to do it. A 30 year mortgage also lets you buy... [ More ]

Reply #11

Tucker Black — Thu, 28 May 2026 04:43:05 GMT

He bought a house on six acres, presumably with a 30 year mortgage. $260k a year minus taxes minus reasonable living expenses and a 5 year mortgage would pay for a decent house.

Of course, he could save up the money for a few years and then pay cash, but that would cost a lot more if he was renting.

It's not so much the mortgage itself but being mortgaged to the hilt. Borrowing as much as possible and spending every penny is a really bad idea.

Reply #10

Artist77 — Thu, 28 May 2026 01:33:42 GMT

I believe there were a couple of FTC cases where PCH had to send checks to people who ordered magazines. Pch had told people they had to order to be in the sweepstakes. They were always engaged in deceptive practices. More than a few elderly people thought they had won.

Reply #9

Brock Lee — Thu, 28 May 2026 01:11:35 GMT

if you're worried about a state lottery not being able to pay an annuity, choose the lump sum.

Reply #8

Coin Toss — Wed, 27 May 2026 19:02:06 GMT

Tucker Black, On a previous post you said he bought a house using a mortgage - moron , now you suggest a 5 year mortgage . WT2

Reply #7

Tucker Black — Wed, 27 May 2026 13:54:27 GMT

Nobody can tell the future, but a smart person doesn't blow all their money the minute it arrives. Same some for a rainy day.

This guy could have bought a decent house with a five year mortgage. The interest rate is less, and more importantly, it would have been paid off five years ago, and he would have a place to live.

Reply #6

AllenB — Wed, 27 May 2026 13:05:23 GMT

I remember The Publishers Clearing House package that came in the mail back when I was a kid. Remember they had a couple of pages with stamps of every magazine available. I bet you could get some bucks for one of those packages on Antique Road Show

They said you did not have to buy a magazine to win. They used to knock on the winner s door and surprise them. Some of the reactions were priceless.

I blame the Interweb for the demise of PCH. Also surprised that PCH lasted as long as it di... [ More ]

Reply #5

LottoBux — Wed, 27 May 2026 11:41:50 GMT

Easy to say that after the fact,

How was the guy supposed to know that PCH would claim bankruptcy

Reply #4

Lotto Motto — Tue, 26 May 2026 13:18:53 GMT

Thank you for that indepth detailed link to the PCH Annuity Sweepstakes Bankruptcy. :) I was mistaken when I said he was supposed to get millions until his death, turns out he was getting $260,000 a year before taxes. That's still a very nice chunk of change to live off. There are people who work for 10 years and accumulate around $260,000 minus taxes and he was getting that every year for 10 years and not having to work. He shouldn't have blown his money frivolously.

Reply #3

Tucker Black — Tue, 26 May 2026 04:53:31 GMT

This guy got $260,000 every year for the past ten years. He bought a house using a mortgage -- moron

Reply #2

KY Floyd — Tue, 26 May 2026 04:18:00 GMT

He said this left him financially ruined and he can't find a job as he hasn't worked in roughly 10 years and is an older man. He said he blew his PCH Annuity payments frivolously

Poor decisions can lead to all sorts of problems. If he's lucky some of that frivolous spending resulted in assets that can be sold, such as more house than a guy with a modest fixed income (he probably qualifies for social security) needs, and Walmart might give him a job as a greeter.

What do the wronged PCH... [ More ]

Reply #1

Brock Lee — Tue, 26 May 2026 02:48:47 GMT

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/business/pch-sweepstakes-bankruptcy-winners-unpaid.html

I know that this is technically not a lottery question, it's about PCH Sweepstakes bankruptcy .

Lotto Motto — Tue, 26 May 2026 02:05:53 GMT

So, Publisher's Clearinghouse had a Sweepstakes where if you win you were supposed to win millions of dollars for life through an annuity program. They even had an annuity program where when you die someone you chose as your heir, gets millions of dollars until they die. Recently and suddenly, PCH went bankrupt, leaving winners suddenly in financial ruin. One winner won the annuity Sweepstakes roughly 10 years ago and quit his job since he was promised millions of dollars until his death. He was... [ More ]