If you suddenly became filthy rich, would it make you happier?

This hasnt happened to me(yet), so I cant say for sure how it would effect me in the long term. I was born to a middle class family, and my father busted his butt at his job at a large multinational company to overcome his mostly useless bachelor's degree in "statistics", and it paid off eventually, as from the time I was 12 we kinda moved into the upper middle class bracket, then my parents divorced when I was like 14 in the 80's. His new wife's daughters got straight A's in school, compared with my lack of scholastic enthusiasm and rebelliousness/long hair, etc. Then he got transferred(again) back to NC, and then transferred back up here about 14 years ago. and now I've seen him 4 times in 24 years!

So he's got money now, and has had money for a long time, but I never see a penny of it, so I only get what I earn as far as income, no more, no less. But I see other people being spoiled rotten by their parents from an early age til their parents die and they inherit ALL the money. I stand to inherit squat pretty much...

I did go out with a girl in the 90's who's parents owned 2 large, local construction/masonry contracting companies. They are very well off, and owned their entire street, and all the houses on it! But although we got along good, I wasnt ready for marriage, and I wasnt very attracted to her, so I just wanted to be friends after a while, but she wanted to get married, so I broke it off. It was then that I realized that I couldve settled into a not-so-happy marriage for money, and been financially set for life, and for coming generations, but the whole idea of becoming a "gold digger" and pretending to love someone I didnt love, and deceiving someone for their money kinda makes me sick! It wouldnt be worth it. Yet so many people do it!:thumbsdow

But if I won the lottery(that I never play) and I became rich, I think I would be extremely happy in the short term because I could drive the cars I've always wanted to drive, own a mansion, etc. But with that comes all the negative attention, all the gold diggers, the fair weather friends, the moochers, and then I'd be hanging out with the other rich people, many of whom are douches. Plus you gotta hire accountants, lawyers for all the bogus lawsuits leveled against you, etc.

I really dont know if being rich makes rich people more or less happy than middle class people or even poorer people for that matter, as they dont have to worry about all the nonsense that goes along with it all. Plus, the gov't dependent dont have to work and yet get 100% support, a free home, free health care, free food, clothing, money, etc. They have zero responsibility and can sleep late every day! But that life leads to even more misery and failure, drugs, jail, dropping out of school, and its a perpetual cycle.


How do you think great wealth would effect you in the short and long term?

The key to happiness with money isn't the money itself, it's knowing how to handle it. All the things you mentioned--gold diggers, moochers, lawyers, assholes, misery, etc. don't come hand-in-hand with having money. People who come into lots of money, either through lotteries or years of work, often have no idea what to do with it or how to manage their lifestyle. A woman wins the lottery and buys fancy stuff for all her neighbors and suddenly she's a target for everyone around her. An NFL player gets a huge contract and spends all the money on Bentleys, hookers, and coke, and when he's cut by the team two years later he's homeless. A man works hard and finally sells his business, and tries to live like Donald Trump and ends up in an empty life surrounded by jerks and trophy ex-wives.

What you want to do is try and be smart. Say you win the lottery. Don't get handed the giant check on TV and run out and buy a mansion, a Porsche, and a Russian underwear model. Instead, be careful about it accept the lottery payment anonymously or through a trust/corporation. Pay off all your debts. Get your living conditions to a point you're comfortable with without going overboard (replace that Yugo with a nice Toyota, but skip the Ferrari.) Invest the rest of the money in various things and live off the dividends/interest/profits. Keep your same friends and don't try to make new ones through financial status.

People who have money and know how to keep it are a good example. Like Warren Buffet--unless you know he's Warren Buffet you'd have no clue he was wealthy beyond imagination just by looking at his lifestyle.

Would striking it rich make me happy? Well, it'd take care of most of the things that make me unhappy. I'd like to think I'm reasonable enough to not get screwed over by it.

I'm not a very eloquent man, so in short allow me to respond thusly: "hells yeah"

To echo what abtomat said, I think a lot of it has to do with your personality. If you're the type that lacks self control, you'll surely be worse off with more money...

Perhaps the ability to focus on things other than my job, and to spend more time watching my kids grow up would make me happier. More time with my Wife. Less stress over being sure the bills were paid. Knowing that the rainy day was taken care of. Things like that. Knowing I had my kid's backs if needed without worrying about it. Cars, boats, vacations, fancy houses would give fleeting amusement and fun I guess, but not so much "happiness"...

I would say a windfall would definitely ease the stress I'm currently dealing with, so that would make me happier, but like you said, you inherit other issues that come with being wealthy. But in a world where money (unfortuantely) is the number one key factor to living, I guess the stresses experienced as a whole would be less if you were wealthy.

For me I'd rather just have $2million saved somewhere so I can just live off of the interest. It's just enough so that you don't have to worry about work if you lost it, but ideally you would need to work to keep yourself busy and earn a little extra income to live a comfortable lifestyle. And at the very end, you have enough to take care of your family and most of what life throws at you.

ABTOMAT said:

The key to happiness with money isn't the money itself, it's knowing how to handle it. All the things you mentioned--gold diggers, moochers, lawyers, assholes, misery, etc. don't come hand-in-hand with having money. People who come into lots of money, either through lotteries or years of work, often have no idea what to do with it or how to manage their lifestyle. A woman wins the lottery and buys fancy stuff for all her neighbors and suddenly she's a target for everyone around her. An NFL player gets a huge contract and spends all the money on Bentleys, hookers, and coke, and when he's cut by the team two years later he's homeless. A man works hard and finally sells his business, and tries to live like Donald Trump and ends up in an empty life surrounded by jerks and trophy ex-wives.

What you want to do is try and be smart. Say you win the lottery. Don't get handed the giant check on TV and run out and buy a mansion, a Porsche, and a Russian underwear model. Instead, be careful about it accept the lottery payment anonymously or through a trust/corporation. Pay off all your debts. Get your living conditions to a point you're comfortable with without going overboard (replace that Yugo with a nice Toyota, but skip the Ferrari.) Invest the rest of the money in various things and live off the dividends/interest/profits. Keep your same friends and don't try to make new ones through financial status.

People who have money and know how to keep it are a good example. Like Warren Buffet--unless you know he's Warren Buffet you'd have no clue he was wealthy beyond imagination just by looking at his lifestyle.

Would striking it rich make me happy? Well, it'd take care of most of the things that make me unhappy. I'd like to think I'm reasonable enough to not get screwed over by it.

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I agree with most of that, and if I suddenly came into 2 million dollars(which isnt that much these days), I'd buy a $350,000 house in a rural area not too far from town on an acre or 2 with a low interest mortgage, and the interest rate would be guaranteed low because of the 2 million dollars in capital I'd have in accounts to back it up. I just paid off my truck last year, so I would spoil myself and buy a new Mustang Boss 302 or maybe a Cadillac CTS-V with a low interest loan, so I could use the money left over from my windfall to invest in various ways.

When I said mansion in the OP, I was then speaking of becoming REALLY rich all the sudden, like 50 million dollars! Then I'd buy a 3 million dollar home, which would go up in value over the coming years anyway, and I'd buy an antique performance car or four, which would also go up in value, and I'd buy a new sports car, which would be the one investment that wouldnt go up in value.....

I just looked into a few houses being sold by celebrities, and I read about 3 of them that were just sold, and all of them were bought in the last 8-11 years, and all of them went up in value by 30-100% over that time, even though real estate has been terrible in the past 5 years. It seems that the homes of the really wealthy always go up in value, even while our homes are plummeting!

HighlanderNorth said:

I agree with most of that, and if I suddenly came into 2 million dollars(which isnt that much these days), I'd buy a $350,000 house in a rural area not too far from town on an acre or 2 with a low interest mortgage, and the interest rate would be guaranteed low because of the 2 million dollars in capital I'd have in accounts to back it up. I just paid off my truck last year, so I would spoil myself and buy a new Mustang Boss 302 or maybe a Cadillac CTS-V with a low interest loan, so I could use the money left over from my windfall to invest in various ways.

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I don't get it. If you had 2 million dollars you'd get a mortgage and a car loan?? Why not buy the house and car outright and save the money on interest?

copperfox said:

I don't get it. If you had 2 million dollars you'd get a mortgage and a car loan?? Why not buy the house and car outright and save the money on interest?

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I would do the same and secure low interest credit with the money where required. Don't part with your own money until it's worked for you to the core. With that sum of money, you can earn past the interest without issue among other things.

You pay cash for a house and a car, all you have is a house and money being sucked away in a rapidly depreciating item. With low interest loans I pay you 4 percent but earn 7+ (conservative) percent on my money in the right hands.



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I'm happy now, so I'm not sure that I'd be happier.

I just retired, so it would not impact my job.

My wife likes our house, so we would not move.

I have most of the toys that I want, and no room to put more.

I have a car that I like, and no place to park another.

There are some things I'd do with a few million. I'd buy the house next door and use it for storage/workshop. It's hard to create or mod flashlights or work on furniture when you have no room to work.

I'd set up my kids in their own business so they are self sustaining. I'd invest the rest the most secure investments I can find.

But that would not make me happier.

Daniel

Very interesting thread here.

Here's my comment:


Two years ago, i had Cataract Surgery (both eyes).

After wearing Eyeglasses for FIFTY YEARS, i suddenly can see PERFECTLY, withOUT glasses !

20/20 vision (or better) in Both Eyes !

(note: cannot focus closer than ~40 centimeters, so still need 2.00 Reading Glasses for close-up stuff)


This has truly been a Major Miracle in my life.

A real eye-opening experience, if you'll pardon the pun.


Made me appreciate -- Every Single Day -- what a priceless "second chance" this has been for me.


I've gotta' say that I'm *already* pretty damn happy with my Life !




A great BIG improvement ! ! !

It would be nice to own my own business. Winning the lottery would give me the capital to invest without having to kill myself to earn it the hard way, and money to pay the paychecks until the business became profitable. All I'd need is a good idea...

Generally speaking, money can't buy Happiness, but it sure can rent her by the hour.

One once said, and noted that "life is suffering". Apparently the view had enough merit to be spread worldwide, and repeated and studied by millions.

Our efforts and thoughts are spent addressing that suffering and attempting to identify and grasp the means of alleviating that suffering.

Money, which has been identified as a protection and alleviation of many potential sufferings, bears an appearance of advantage. While I can't say all, many would look to a financial windfall as a step toward a solution.

Would such a windfall bring about a solution to the point that the principle of "life is suffering" no longer applies?

No. The principal would still apply; though many of us would welcome a change in the particular "sufferings" common to us.

copperfox said:

I don't get it. If you had 2 million dollars you'd get a mortgage and a car loan?? Why not buy the house and car outright and save the money on interest?

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Why? Cause you can make much more interest on that money if you keep it and invest it, and pay a low interest rate on the mortgage. You get a 3% interest rate mortgage since you have more than enough capital to back it up, and you invest that 350K into gold or some other higher interest rate investment, then you make out better in the long run. The car loan would be even lower interest, like 1-2%.

ABTOMAT said:

What you want to do is try and be smart. Say you win the lottery. Don't get handed the giant check on TV and run out and buy a mansion, a Porsche, and a Russian underwear model. Instead, be careful about it accept the lottery payment anonymously or through a trust/corporation. Pay off all your debts. Get your living conditions to a point you're comfortable with without going overboard (replace that Yugo with a nice Toyota, but skip the Ferrari.) Invest the rest of the money in various things and live off the dividends/interest/profits. Keep your same friends and don't try to make new ones through financial status.

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+ 1......Except for the Russian Underwear Model, I'd definitely be getting me one of those! :twothumbs

Speaking to wife: "Honey, since we now have all this money, I hired you a maid." .........

~ Chance

I don't know if it would make me happier, but it would reduce the stress of day to day living.

I have a job I love, a nice car (ok, it's nothing special, but it is perfect for what I use a car for) a wife I adore, and who adores me, 3 awesome cats.
i live in a fairly poor rental house, but the rent is rediculously cheap, and it's 15mins from work (20 on a bad day) moving would cost much more, so we are staying put for now

If I became filthy rich, I would probably try and buy the house i am in, flatten it and rebuild something nicer and more suitable (paying the low rate mortgage with the interest earned on the money I have)

Maybe buy a fun sportscar too (a caterham or something light and nimble)

For most people, suddenly coming into a large fortune of money is kind of like getting ahold of the One Ring from Tolkien's trilogy. It seems really freakin' awesome at first and everything's going great but sooner or later you realize you're in deep deep doo-doo and by then it's too late.


There have been follow-up studies of people who hit the lottery, and for many of those people things ended badly after several years had gone by. Some were broke, and if I remember right I think some were murdered by someone hoping to cash in.

There's a quote, I can't remember from who, but he said "Have you ever seen a happy millionaire?"

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there is a benefit to having money but it's not a ticket to life satisfaction or happiness. I've known people who were dirt poor but they had close friends and they were happier than most other people I've met who were far wealthier. Money can buy you "stuff" but new stuff quickly becomes old stuff and you're still back where you started. If you've got a few close friends and/or family who care about you and you care about them, then you've got something that no amount of money can buy.

I like the way you think Chance!

To answer the question in the topic title . . . YES!

But not so I could buy a ton of stuff I'd instantly be bored with. It would be so that I could enjoy complete financial security for the rest of my life. Put the money in the bank, and just live off the interest. Relax with my friends. Sell my place. Move into a slightly bigger one. Move into any neighborhood I want to. (Though must admit that my current one is actually a very decent place to live.) Travel more than I do now.

Most important of all is get my mother a wonderful place to live in, along with a new car.

Money just gives you the freedom to do a lot more than you otherwise could in Life. No stress over bills, no stress over unexpected expenses, no stress over unexpected injuries. Total financial security just reduces stress to an extreme level. Thus leading to happiness. Unfortunately, you have some who kill themselves to afford the car payments on their Mercedes, their townhouse, designer clothes, jewelry, etc. In that case, money increases stress. But if you, say win the $52,000,000 lottery, and you don't let the money inflate your head or ego; you can live stress-free for the rest of your days. Just be sure to do some good with some of that money for others less fortunate.

Monocrom said:

To answer the question in the topic title . . . YES!

But not so I could buy a ton of stuff I'd instantly be bored with. It would be so that I could enjoy complete financial security for the rest of my life. Put the money in the bank, and just live off the interest. Relax with my friends. Sell my place. Move into a slightly bigger one. Move into any neighborhood I want to. (Though must admit that my current one is actually a very decent place to live.) Travel more than I do now.

Most important of all is get my mother a wonderful place to live in, along with a new car.

Money just gives you the freedom to do a lot more than you otherwise could in Life. No stress over bills, no stress over unexpected expenses, no stress over unexpected injuries. Total financial security just reduces stress to an extreme level. Thus leading to happiness. Unfortunately, you have some who kill themselves to afford the car payments on their Mercedes, their townhouse, designer clothes, jewelry, etc. In that case, money increases stress. But if you, say win the $52,000,000 lottery, and you don't let the money inflate your head or ego; you can live stress-free for the rest of your days. Just be sure to do some good with some of that money for others less fortunate.

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I couldn't have put it better myself.