10 Things $1 Billion Could Buy You
Updated: Nov. 28, 2023
It's amazing how far those nine zeroes can stretch.
Win it all, spend it all
Last week a winning ticket for the $731.1 million Powerball was sold in Maryland and the winner of the Mega Millions still hasn’t claimed the $1 billion ticket that was sold in Michigan. If you were to suddenly acquire a massive influx of cash, what would you do with it? We have some ideas… After all, spending it all in one go means you probably won’t end up like these big lottery winners whose luck ran out.
The Miami Marlins
There is only one Major League Baseball team a billionaire could afford in 2021, according to Forbes: the Miami Marlins ($980 million). It seems like a bit of a bargain, seeing as they made it to the Division Series in the 2020 season, only to lose to the Atlanta Braves ($1.8 billion, not that we’re counting). Hope you like Florida! If not, maybe you could borrow a bit from a friend to buy the next-cheapest team: the Kansas City Royals ($1.025 billion). Baseball fans and aspiring billionaires alike will want to know the most common winning lottery numbers.
The most expensive house in America
It’s called “The One,” and it’s located in Bel Air, Los Angeles. Listed at $500 million, it’s the most expensive private residence ever to hit the market in this country. As you would expect, it’s quite lavish, with five swimming pools, 20 bedrooms, 30 bathrooms, a 36-seat movie theater, a bowling alley, a 30-car garage, and a nightclub all sprawling over 100,000 square feet. If you left your phone somewhere, it could take you weeks to find it! The lottery really brings out the bad in some people—this man rigged it five times before he was caught!
Some nice art
The most expensive painting ever to sell at auction was Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which sold for $450.3 million in November 2017, a drop in the ocean of your $1 billion bank account. You could easily follow that up with a couple of Modigilianis ($150 and $170 million), and perhaps a Picasso ($179 million). After all, no one likes bare walls. These money-saving tips from self-made millionaires will help you create the gallery wall of your dreams.
A boat (sorry, super-yacht)
For $600 million, you could buy the Azzam—a 590 foot luxury yacht that’s one of the fastest in the world (because those Greek islands wait for no man). The interior is decorated in the French style, so you can feel like Marie Antoinette in your own floating Versailles. Do you know which states have the most lottery winners?
A private island
You could buy a private island for a lot less than $1 billion, when you have the cash, you might as well go big. Blue Island in the Bahamas is up for grabs. It includes a jet airstrip, main living and staff houses, 4 miles of roads, and power, water, and communications hookups. And it won’t even break your budget, costing only $75 million. This bizarre story of love, lies, and lottery winnings will be a perfect beach read.
Balmoral Castle
Even a billionaire couldn’t afford Buckingham Palace (estimated to be worth more than $1.4 billion), but you could afford one of Queen Elizabeth II’s most famous private properties: her little (50,000 acres) summer home, Balmoral. The Scottish estate is estimated to be worth around $140 million—just a drop in the bucket. Find out how much everyone in the British royal family is actually worth.
A plane
Private jets are for schmucks. With $1 billion, you could have your pick of Boeing commercial planes, worth anywhere from $89.1.4 million to $442.2 million. Might as well buy a few. One for each continent? Here’s what life might look like after winning the lottery, based on stories from real winners.
The most expensive car in the world
In 2018, 1963 Ferrari GTO sold for $70 million in what experts believe was the highest price tag on a car in history. Only 36 of that model were ever made, but with $1 billion, you could afford a few in your garage.
The White House
You’d only be handing over half of that wad of cash, according to real estate listings firm Zillow. White House property: $398 million. The chance to be president: priceless.
A family vacation to space
For $52 million a pop, you could and your family could spend a week and a half at the International Space Station. Just be prepared to answer a lot of questions of “Are we there yet?”—it takes two days of travel just to get there. Now, we’re off to buy a lottery ticket or five.
Sources:
- USA Today: “Mega Million’ $970 million jackpot”
- Forbes: “The Business of Baseball”
- House Beautiful: “The One, Bel Air”
- Invaluable.com: “31 of the Most Expensive Paintings Ever Sold at Auction”
- Atlas Marine Systems: “The 10 Biggest and Most Expensive Yachts”
- Vladi Private Islands: “Blue Island”
- Fox Business: “Which royal palace is worth the most money?”
- Boeing.com: “Prices”
- CNBC: “This Ferrari just became the most expensive car ever sold”
- Business Insider: “Here’s how much it would cost to buy the White House”
- CNBC: “A trip to the International Space Station will cost tourists $52 million”
