19 November 2023 , 21:45
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A lottery player has won an amazing $1,000 a day for life prize but made a massive decision that will change how they get their winnings.
The Albany based winner formed a company to claim the prize after matching all six numbers drawn in the New York Lottery Cash4life drawing on August 14. The winner, who is currently unknown, opted to claim the prize in one go, instead of the daily allowance.
This means they have been granted a one-time payment of $4,285,683 to their company, Pinkey Esmond Limited Liability Company, SLive reports. The winning numbers were 13, 27, 28, 52, 59 and Cash Ball 01. The ticket was purchased at Church Bluye Sky Deli on 2021 Church Ave in Brooklyn.
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Earlier this year, a woman from Long Island claimed the same prize a year after she purchased her winning lottery ticket. Genine Plummer bought her ticket on May 26, 2022 but never checked to see if she was a winner. Almost a year later, she saw news that a winning ticket from that same month had never been claimed, so she decided to check all of her tickets.
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The New Yorker was shocked to discover that the unclaimed win was in fact hers. The New York Lottery doesn't just benefit winners, but schools in the area too. Revenue from the ticket sales is distributed to local school districts by the same formula used to distribute other state aid to education.
The New York Lottery benefits schools (UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The winner won $1,000 a day for life (Getty Images)This means a school district's income level is taken into consideration and disadvantaged schools receive more money than others. It is North America's largest and most profitable lottery and contributes a whopping $3.6billion each year.
If you are fancying your chances of winning a big prize sum, you might well listen to advice from lawyer Andrew Stoltman. Stoltmann, has represented many lottery winners and says that dealing with family members asking for money can be tough. "Saying 'no' to family might be the toughest thing that lottery winners have to do," he said.
He advised that winners should first get help from financial advisors and tax professionals, and even an attorney. He told CNBC: "Lottery winners historically are from lower socio-economic backgrounds. They don't have the experience managing money or establishing the financial team."
John Loyd, a financial planner, advises winners to "do nothing" at first and take some time to get organized. He said, "Money is an emotional thing," and it's best to avoid making decisions based on emotions.