# What would you do if you had $100,000 cash right now and had to spend it? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2001, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597 "2001-01-24T19:16:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/21 "2001-01-25T03:27:59Z")
Pay all my debts. Offer some money to my friend to pay off his student debt. Donate lots of money to the NDP, Oxfam, Amnesty International, and Greenpeace. Start a foundation for gay kids. Buy myself a few little nice things. ---
**Author:** ![Eo\_Echo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ebca7d/32.png) [@Eo\_Echo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eo_Echo)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/22 "2001-01-25T04:22:41Z")
I’d buy an Explorer, put a down payment on a house, and buy a new set of drums. ---
**Author:** ![Falcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/49beb7/32.png) [@Falcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falcon)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/23 "2001-01-25T04:34:56Z")
Hrm. First, pay off the credit cards. That leaves around $89,000…hrm. I’d probably take some money and travel for a bit…see some Dopers in the US, and go back to the UK for a while. Then take the rest and go back to school. Damn, I’m exciting. NOT! ---
**Author:** ![andygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@andygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andygirl)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/24 "2001-01-25T05:01:18Z")
Oooh… that would take a nice chunk out of quietgirl’s and my tuition. ---
**Author:** ![Cyndar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Cyndar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyndar)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/25 "2001-01-25T05:17:52Z")
Pay off my student loans and credit cards= 11,000. Pay my parents back for the car and other stuff=18,000. That still leaves me a lot to play with. I like the car I have now, and want to hold on to it for a long time, so I wouldn’t go get a new car. I’m not ready to buy a house, but with that kind of money, I could afford to rent something a lot nicer than what I have now. So some of the money would go towards better living conditions. In all honesty, I would probably plunk down between 5-15,000 for a few plastic surgeries (little ones, like chin and cheek implants, maybe a little lipo). A trip to Europe. That would prolly do it… ---
**Author:** ![silent\_rob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@silent\_rob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silent_rob)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/26 "2001-01-25T05:30:02Z")
I’d go to my friends in the film program and say, “Hey, remember that film script I was writing, that we thought would be great but couldn’t afford to make? What are you guys doing this summer?” 🙂 Ohhh…that would be sweet. I know, a $100,000 isn’t a lot of money for a film, but it’s a great start. I could work on raising the rest in the meantime, as I finished the script. School might get in the way, but I’d work around it. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/27 "2001-01-25T05:48:43Z")
Pay off the car, my student loan, and my wife’s debts (app. $30,000 total). After that, I would buy myself a new car (probably spend $20-$30,000), get a new computer and upgrade the ones I have ($5,000), get a decent guitar, amp, and some other music equipment (another $5,000), and spend the rest on a house, maybe a nice doublewide. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/28 "2001-01-25T05:49:15Z")
…I’ve thought of this thousands of times, and I know exactly what I’d do. I would grab our passports, and shot books, get the SO, take a cab to the airport, and from there, well, the next flight to the BIG city, then west, further west, and further west till I hit a south pacific beach. Once at the beach I would carefully consider how to spend the other $95,000. Wisely knowing you always make better decisions with a tan and a belly full of seafood. But I’d definitely include an Ark, or two from [http://www.heifer.com](http://www.heifer.com), {sorry I don’t do the code thingy}. I love this place. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/29 "2001-01-25T05:50:35Z")
…apparently I do ! ---
**Author:** ![dewt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9dc877/32.png) [@dewt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dewt)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/30 "2001-01-25T05:53:38Z")
Put some money into my house so that it doesn’t fall down around me. Then sell it and buy an even crappier house with more land. Oddly this a rather accurate statement. hmmmm, when you look at it _that_ way… ---
**Author:** ![Silo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac91a4/32.png) [@Silo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silo)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/31 "2001-01-25T06:13:14Z")
[No debt here, so…] I’d buy maybe $10,000 worth in gadgets, electronic gear, etc…(stuff I don’t really need, but it would be _kewl_ to have). Spend another $10,000 professionally cutting an album, of my music, in a studio. And spend the remaining **$$$** vacationing around the globe and/or investing in some property. 🙂 So where’s the dough?! Sheesh, I was getting excited there for a second! ---
**Author:** ![brachyrhynchos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brachyrhynchos/32/376_2.png) [@brachyrhynchos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brachyrhynchos)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/32 "2001-01-25T06:49:33Z")
First I’d do the debt thing. Then I’d hire someone to clean out my “bird room” (where I keep my equipment). Then I’d get a blepharectomy (one for each eye). Then I’d get my apartment painted. Then I’d fly over to the Antipodes Island to see the parakeets that walk among the penguins. This is something I’d really like to see. Before I go, I’d buy the best pair of Leicas possible plus that Mavica camera that writes to a CD. With my leftover money, I’d go to the bookstore. ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/33 "2001-01-25T07:25:42Z")
I don’t have much debt now, but I will soon, with grad school on the horizon. But since I can’t save any of the money… I’d put money down on a cute little house with a porch swing. I’d order a houseful of nice furniture from a Pottery Barn catalog. And with what’s left, I’d invest in a CD jukebox and fill it with a hundred of my favourite CDs. That would make me happy for a good long time, I think. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/34 "2001-01-25T07:40:51Z")
I’d pay off debt (less than $4,000) Invest some in some sort of fund for Nicky’s college tuition Buy a new laptop Put $1,000 each into about 5 favorite charities Put the rest as a downpayment on a house. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/35 "2001-01-25T13:30:12Z")
I would pay off existing debt. 26,000 I would by a Nissan Pathfinder 24,000 I would by a home computer 1,000 I would buy a new wardrobe 5,000 I would by a personal watercraft 10,000 I would by Dodger season tickets 6,000 I would blow the rest on a kick-ass Hawaiian vacation! ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/36 "2001-01-25T13:31:34Z")
Pay off current debt ($5,000) Downpayment on house ($20,000 - don’t put too much into the house unless you’re going to be there long enough to get the investment back in equity at the time of sale). New car ($25,000) A few furnishings for the new house ($10,000) Two week trip to Tahiti for two ($5,000) Make the following investments: $5,000 - Coca Cola $5,000 - GE $5,000 - Star Scientific $5,000 - United Dominion Realty Trust $5,000 - Dominion Resources $5,000 - Triple A Rated U.S. Treasury notes with staggered maturity dates Some new clothes ($2,000) Gifts - ($3,000) ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/37 "2001-01-25T13:36:09Z")
Spend a week being the highest bidder on ebay! ---
**Author:** ![Tansu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/67e7ee/32.png) [@Tansu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tansu)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/38 "2001-01-25T13:55:16Z")
Based on an exchange rate of $1.5:£1, I’d have £66 667. I’d pay off our mortgage with £41 000. Then I’d take my partner on a cruise of the Southern Ocean, which would cost around £16 000. With the remaining ten grand or so, I’d buy some good audio equipment and either make an extra contribution into my company pension scheme, or make some medium-long term investment for future plans (if I have children, if they want to go to university etc) . Unfortunately, I don’t know much about the markets. I’d either have to take professional advice or start boning up quickly, given that we have to spend the money straight away. ---
**Author:** ![Mullinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@Mullinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mullinator)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/39 "2001-01-25T14:05:57Z")
No student or car loans to deal with, so all I have to do is worry about the mortgage on our new house. However, since we have a really good rate, I wouldn’t waste my money by paying off the loan. I would invest it in a money market CD that is earning an interest rate higher than my mortgage and make a few extra bucks in the process. Also, an endless stream of strippers and booze. ---
**Author:** ![Cumber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5ac83/32.png) [@Cumber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumber)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2001, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597/40 "2001-01-25T15:18:44Z")
$US or $AUS? 🙂 Hmm, no debts for me… would probably want to buy a new 'puter… maybe a flat near the city, nothing too flash but preferably something I’m going to be able to sell for more than I bought it when I want to get a bigger house… might buy a car, not an expensive one, I’ve never seen the point in owning a flash car when a cheaper one does the job just as well… pay for driving lessons if I get a car 🙂 After that I’d probably give some money to my parents to pay off their houses, maybe some money for my brothers. Then I’d take a trip to Canada to see what this snow stuff is. 🙂 Peoples in the US I’d want to see as well. A good holiday to North America in general. Is that $100,000 yet? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-you-had-100-000-cash-right-now-and-had-to-spend-it/51597.md?page=3)