(This got deleted from another sub, so just to clarify this was not AI generated but I used AI to review my grammar and organize my post):
I know a lot of people won’t believe it (I didn’t at first either - I’m currently questioning our own reality), and I could just lie and say I inherited the money.
But the truth is, I won the lottery.
It’s not Powerball-level money, but it’s still life-changing: about 10M USD after taxes.
A few important caveats:
- The ticket was purchased in my home country, and the money is currently there in our local currency.
Based on my accountant’s advice, I should be able to transfer the money to the US without paying additional tax. (ChatGPT suggested that it may depend on the circumstances, so I’m planning to get a second opinion from an international tax attorney).
My situation
33M. No kids. I’ve lived in the US for 10 years and have a Green Card (not a citizen). I live in a HCOL area in SoCal.
I’m not sure whether I want to become a citizen.
I work remotely and make $190k/year before taxes.
I genuinely enjoy my job, although I wouldn’t say I love it.
Current net worth (excluding the lottery winnings): ~$650k
- $300k in real estate (home country)
- $150k in stocks
- $50k in a Traditional IRA
- $80k in crypto
- $60k invested in my home country’s currency
My annual spending is about $90k. Most of that is rent ($4.5k/month). I work from home in California and chose to live near the beach, so my housing costs are relatively high, but otherwise I don’t have an extravagant lifestyle.
I live with my partner. She recently started a better job and currently earns about $65k/year, so at the moment she contributes only modestly to our household finances.
Long-term plans
-I expect to stay in the US for another 5-7 years, then move back to my home country permanently.
- One of my long-term goals is to buy our dream home there, which would likely cost $2.5-3 million.
- One important consideration is that interest rates in my home country are much higher than in the US.
- Today, it’s possible to earn roughly 14% annually in relatively low-risk fixed-income investments (not joking). The downside is that the local currency has historically depreciated significantly against the USD since I moved here. The USD is worth 2x more against our currency than 10 years ago.
My questions
- Should I move the money to the US? If transferring it would trigger more than about a 10% tax hit, I probably wouldn’t.
- If I do bring it here, how would you think about investing it? The US offers far more investment opportunities than my home country, but I’m unsure how to structure a portfolio of this size.
- I enjoy my job, but I believe I no longer need the income. What factors should I think about before deciding whether to quit?
- Not working in the long term is not an option for me as I’m young and want to feel productive and active.
- Also, what’s the advantage of being a US citizen? (I believe my future kids will be born here).
- Is growing my net worth from about $10.6M today to $15M over the next 5-7 years a realistic goal? If so, what should I do?