Question

Suppose you win a small lottery and have the choice of two ways to be paid: You can accept the money in a lump sum or in a series of payments over time. If you pick the lump sum, you get $2,850 today. If you pick payments over time, you get three payments: $1,000 today, $1,000 1 year from today, and $1,000 2 years from today. At an interest rate of 9% per year, the winner would be better off accepting the , since that choice has the greater present value. At an interest rate of 11% per year, the winner would be better off accepting , since it has the greater present value. Years after you win the lottery, a friend in another country calls to ask your advice. By wild coincidence, she has just won another lottery with the same payout schemes. She must make a quick decision about whether to collect her money under the lump sum or the payments over time. What is the best advice to give your friend? The lump sum is always better. The payments over time are always better. It will depend on the interest rate; advise her to get a calculator. None of these answers is good advice.

Answer 1

The correct answer would be option A, The lump sum is always better.

Step-by-step explanation:

If I would have to give advice to my friend who is in the same situation as i was in some time back, I would recommend him to go for the Lump sum choice. This is because of the fact that the interest rate compounded in three years payment schedule will result in the less value of what I am getting today. Accepting the lump sum value in contrast with accepting the yearly payments on 9% interest rate would be better off because it has more value at present.