# Best Way to Spend Casino Winnings **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 11, 2015, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425 "2015-02-11T22:52:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/1 "2015-02-11T22:52:08Z")
On Monday I went with my friends to eat at the casino and do some casual gaming. Well a $20 bill magically turned into about $5500! Dopers…what is the smartest thing I can do with my windfall? Option 1: I currently have $4000 in credit card debt, pay it off? Option 2: invest in my (profitable) business? Option 3: Stock market Option 4: Make a one time payment on my mortgage which currently has 6.375% rate (stupid credit) this will knock out almost 10% of outstanding principal. Any other thoughts? I would to do something tht will benefit future me the most. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/2 "2015-02-11T22:54:59Z")
Pay off your CC debt. What’s the interest rate you’re paying? Is it more than your mortgage? It’s unlikely that you can match that with any investment right now. ---
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/3 "2015-02-11T22:56:45Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Pay off your CC debt. What’s the interest rate you’re paying? Is it more than your mortgage? It’s unlikely that you can match that with any investment right now. Right around 18% That would also free up about $160 on a monthly basis from here on out. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/4 "2015-02-11T22:56:59Z")
Don’t forget Uncle Sam will be around with his hand out for his share soon enough. Find out how that might eat into your winnings. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/5 "2015-02-11T23:10:12Z")
Chicks and guns and fire trucks and hookers and drugs and booze! ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/6 "2015-02-11T23:17:31Z")
Pay off your credit card and spend the rest on something useful and durable before you give it all back to the casino. Get a new refrigerator or washer and dryer. A nice TV. I won $1000 on a Royal Flush at video poker and bought a plush mattress. Every night I remember the moment I saw that Queen of Hearts come up on the draw and smile, and every morning I am so grateful that I did what I did. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/7 "2015-02-11T23:27:25Z")
Pay the debt. Save the rest. DO NOT GAMBLE ANYMORE! ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/8 "2015-02-11T23:28:41Z")
Paying off the credit card debt is, by far, the best option. Playing the stock market is probably the worst thing you can do. Even putting it in a good index fund will get you a few percent back, but you’re paying a lot more than that on the debt. > [@Morgenstern](#): > > Don’t forget Uncle Sam will be around with his hand out for his share soon enough. Find out how that might eat into your winnings. So, put two grand in a savings account and the rest towards the credit card. When Uncle Sam shows up next April, MrDeals is ready for him. As for putting money towards the mortgage, I wouldn’t do that _unless_ it would give you the ability to refi. Thing is, you can make a big $5500 payment on it and next month the bill will still be exactly the same (assuming he’s not making interest only payments ie an ARM). ---
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/9 "2015-02-11T23:32:29Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > As for putting money towards the mortgage, I wouldn’t do that _unless_ it would give you the ability to refi. Thing is, you can make a big $5500 payment on it and next month the bill will still be exactly the same (assuming he’s not making interest only payments ie an ARM). My idea with the mortgage payment is it will probably save $10,000+ in interest over the course of the loan. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/10 "2015-02-12T00:06:31Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > My idea with the mortgage payment is it will probably save $10,000+ in interest over the course of the loan. True, but if you can find an investment that returns more than the mortgage interest rate, you’re leaving money on the table. Agreed on paying off the CC. There are no reasonable investments for $5000 that return more than 18%. But do make sure and report to the IRS. They’re rather picky about things like that. ---
**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/11 "2015-02-12T00:10:06Z")
Give 50% away (to friends/charity). Not only does it build karma, it ultimately can make you happier. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/12 "2015-02-12T00:16:11Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/13 "2015-02-12T00:23:23Z")
> [@somepumpkin](#): > > Give 50% away (to friends/charity). Not only does it build karma, it ultimately can make you happier. It can also make you very poor in the long-term. I won a little less than that when I went to Las Vegas a couple of years ago. I met some random nice people at the casino bar and I picked up their dinner and drink tab and then took them to the Stratosphere to jump off the top and I paid for that too. That whole experience was certainly fun and memorable but it only cost me about $400. You better bet your ass I kept the rest and spent it on true needs when I got back home. I agree that you should use it on your credit card debt. Go further than that though. Stop using your credit cards for revolving debt once the balance is at $0 and keep it that way. Take the $136 that you freed up and apply that to mortgage principle every month. I don’t know what the terms of your mortage currently are but you can shave a very surprising number of years off the whole thing by paying down principle early. That is what you call a true winning strategy. ---
**Author:** ![buddy431](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@buddy431](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddy431)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/14 "2015-02-12T00:47:07Z")
Pay down the credit card for sure. Can’t make any better investment than that. Paying down a mortgage early is often sort of a wash. You have a higher rate than most, but it’s still similar to what you’d get in the stock market. Both of which are much less than the credit card debt. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/15 "2015-02-12T01:11:20Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Don’t forget Uncle Sam will be around with his hand out for his share soon enough. Find out how that might eat into your winnings. Surprisingly enough, my understanding is that the house will calculate what maximum taxes would be, pull that out, and hand you the rest with your receipt. The receipt is so you can show that you won it on your taxes & paid the maximum. Keep in mind you might get some of that back as a tax refund, so keep that receipt! > [@Casey1505](#): > > Chicks and guns and fire trucks and hookers and drugs and booze! Now don’t be silly! Have you Any Idea just how much a firetruck costs??? ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/16 "2015-02-12T02:01:36Z")
CC debt. I’m assuming you don’t have a liquid savings in case of emergency if you are carrying that debt so stash it for a rainy day. That way the next bump in the road doesn’t end up in new CC debt. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/17 "2015-02-12T02:04:22Z")
Tradition says hookers and blow ----- but I’d probably kill the credit debt. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/18 "2015-02-12T02:31:32Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > On Monday I went with my friends to eat at the casino and do some casual gaming. > > Well a $20 bill magically turned into about $5500! > > Dopers…what is the smartest thing I can do with my windfall? > > Option 1: I currently have $4000 in credit card debt, pay it off? > > Option 2: invest in my (profitable) business? > > Option 3: Stock market > > Option 4: Make a one time payment on my mortgage which currently has 6.375% rate (stupid credit) this will knock out almost 10% of outstanding principal. > Any other thoughts? I would to do something tht will benefit future me the most. Your CC debt interest is surely much higher than your 6.375% loan on the mortgage. Pay that off. And don’t incur more credit card debt. Pay it off EVERY MONTH. If you can’t, you need to adjust your budget because you are living beyond your means. This will go a long way to get a better FICA score so that you can re-fi to a better mortgage. May take some time, but is way worth it. IMHO. Then, once you are paying your CC every month, and you have a cushion, put money towards the principle of the mortgage. Congrats on your winnings. I will be visiting a friend next weekend and we will play video poker while drinking free beer. I plan to lose $40 (no more). But will make a bit of that back with the beer. So, a $20 night out on the town. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/19 "2015-02-12T02:33:30Z")
> [@somepumpkin](#): > > Give 50% away (to friends/charity). Not only does it build karma, it ultimately can make you happier. Fuck karma. Pay off that credit card stat! ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425/20 "2015-02-12T02:53:37Z")
> [@somepumpkin](#): > > Give 50% away (to friends/charity). Not only does it build karma, it ultimately can make you happier. And a little bit about karma. I sort of believe in it I do. But you really can’t help others if you don’t put yourself in a position to really do it. It’s wonderful to give someone your dinner, but if you are both starving the next day, well… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-spend-casino-winnings/712425.md?page=2)