What would you do with $1 million in cash

[aaronc879]

I'd crank up the thermostat to 68° all winter.

That's a good one. I would love to turn the thermostat up to 68 from time to time.

 

[Yarnstormer]

Retire immediately. Roof my house. Roof my convertible. Buy a scamp (camper), a big truck and hit the road!

 

[NW-Bound]

I'm surprised there are not more splurges. C'mon...money with no tax consequences and it all goes into your AA?

What splurge?

I am always envious of posters who said that they only lived off their stock dividends. With the S&P currently paying 2%, I would need a whole lot more than an additional $1M to be able to maintain my current expenses with 2% WR.

The only way I would indulge is to allow myself to draw 3.5%/year off that extra $1M. Surely, I can upgrade a few things in life with that extra $35K, and that's all I need. Maybe not even that much.

 

[Yarnstormer]

Ohhh you meant investment wise. With my current portfolio very heavy in stocks I would prob buy a jumbo cd or a cd ladder with 1/2 the mil and let the rest trickle into the stock market. And yes, I would pay off my house for the peace of mind.

 

[Dawg52]

Buy an SPIA with the $1 mil. At my current age it would pay $5144/mo for life. That + SS + investment income and I'm living pretty large.

Actually I just said this for the shock factor. I might buy a much smaller SPIA, buy a nicer SUV, allocate a little for travel and invest the rest.

 

[Souschef]

Buy a Cessna 172, fund 529's for our grandchildren,donate some to worthy charities, share some with our 4 sons, and do silly things with the rest.

 

[aja8888]

I'd buy a 20 acre or so ranch in the Hill Country of Texas with a barn and horse corral and move there. Then, some day when the time is right, just give it all to my daughter. If there was any money left after the ranch purchase, I would by a new horse trailer, some tack, and a new truck.

 

[RetireAge50]

Maybe buy or rent a little hut next to a good private snorkel beach. Live happily ever after. Might do this regardless.

 

[NW-Bound]

Maybe you only need two coconut trees, and not a whole hut.

Hey look! Someone managed to do with just one coconut tree.

 

[NW-Bound]

How about this hut?

Well, that might take too much work. Maybe this one. I don't see plumbing for toilet and running water though.

 

[splitwdw]

We have no children so I'd give some funds to my nieces and nephews (5) college accounts. My husband's been sick but going to work when he can. I'd make sure he quit if he wanted to. We both enjoy our work but it's been really tough on him. We don't need anything so I'd invest whatever was left in equities. Maybe for a break we'd crew for sengsational.

 

[Aerides]

We're just in our first few months of ER, so the windfall would afford us a much lower SWR, but I don't think we'd go nuts too fast. Would rather rachet up the travel budget for a few years, get the "good" wine more often, put aside some help for niece and nephew with college, and then pretty much plop the rest across vanguard as we do now. Then assuming it performed well enough for a few years, refactor and maybe have a bit more fun down the road.

An extra mill would probably allow most of us (that are ER'd) to take most any risk out of our portfolio's, but where's the fun in that.

 

[lampshade]

Pay off my bills.
Pay off my children's school loans.
Purchase a car for each one of them.
Start a children's charity in my mother's name.
Post a question on this board, "what should I do with $XXX,XXX?"

 

[Car-Guy]

I'd buy a 20 acre or so ranch in the Hill Country of Texas with a barn and horse corral and move there. Then, some day when the time is right, just give it all to my daughter. If there was any money left after the ranch purchase, I would by a new horse trailer, some tack, and a new truck.

Not sure where in the Hill country you are thinking about but you should be able to buy 20 prime acres in most areas in the Hill country, build a nice house on that track of land along with a new barn. Add a few horses along with a new horse trailer and truck to pull it with and have plenty left over. (depending on how much you spend on the house)

 

[brett]

Slow horses, fast cars, and faster women, and lots of good malbec.

 

[timo2]

I would use it as seed money and start a super-pac for some political cause and get people to donate to it. Then close the super-pac and keep all the money. (not really, I can't lie to people very well).

 

[Hermit]

Assuming this is new $, I would go for real estate as I already have plenty of stocks and bonds. First I would build the timber frame house that DW and I have always wished for. The balance would go into rental properties in places that we would like to hang out at for the scenery, like Telluride or Jackson, WY.

Maybe you should ask the OP to increase the mill with 10 mil?

 

[FUEGO]

I'm surprised there are not more splurges. C'mon...money with no tax consequences and it all goes into your AA?

I'd invest it then do my darnedest to ramp up my spending to make sure I'm spending 3.x% of my newly expanded portfolio total. Sort of what we're doing right now with some unexpected side hustle income and increasing portfolio values.

Although after much effort we're still not exceeding 2.5% withdrawal rate this year.

 

[FUEGO]

That's a good one. I would love to turn the thermostat up to 68 from time to time.

After much portfolio success we're living large this year. DW bumped the thermostat's permanent setting from 68 to 69 and I didn't bat an eye. $150 heating bills be damned.

 

[mamadogmamacat]

invest it pretty much same as current AA in ER. Then add about 5k of the approx. 30k investment income, on avg, to my current charitable donations. With the rest: bigger tips, some home improvements, more frequent spa visits, plus whatever else i can think of as time passes. Essentially, "free" money each year that i would not have to plan or budget for. In down investment years, I suppose it could also be used to supplement my regular budget and thus avoid any belt tightening that i might otherwise be tempted to do.

 

[mamadogmamacat]

Already splurge on heating. Below 72, heat goes on. Above 75, air conditioning. Digital thermostats are great, especially for someone who had a poor, cold, chaotic childhood, spent mostly "up north".

 

[aaronc879]

After much portfolio success we're living large this year. DW bumped the thermostat's permanent setting from 68 to 69 and I didn't bat an eye. $150 heating bills be damned.

This is my first winter in my new home. Being in Wisconsin I expect I will be paying more than $150/mo for heat even with a temp setting between 60-65.

 

[rodi]

100k for splurge. Our planned vacation to Japan summer 2017 would definitely involve sitting up front in lie-flat seats. (Can't justify the price with my current nest egg).- that would eat up 10k of the 100k if I upgraded the kids too.

900k invested in 50/50 stock/bond index funds.

 

[Taxman59]

New cars for my sons, a pick up for me, 100k for the homeless shelter, the remainder in investment account. With additional income, splurge on our vacations.

 

[Moemg]

New cars for us , a lot of money for my grandsons college funds , a chunk to my daughter and invest the rest conservatively . I would probably also put in a kitchen worthy of HGTV.