Bernie Madoff goes to jail and Ruth gets to live the high life

Bernard Madoff got exactly what he deserved when the judge in his case sentenced him to 150 years maximum today.

However, some will also say that he was the fall guy for a scheme that included his closest associated and family. Ruth Madoff, Bernard’s wife, will get $2.5 million in a settlement she made with the Justice Department. That money isn’t clear yet because she is still facing charges from the SEC, the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, and those who are liquidating Bernard’s business and estate.

She will likely be putting the money in an investment portfolio, earning around 3% over inflation a year. If she wants to make sure that she doesn’t outlive her money, she will need to only spend around $125k a year to last her until she is 100.

That’s more than the average person makes a year, however she will have to participate in something that she may not want to: downsizing.

All those houses, cars, and other extravagant items will have to be cut and done away with. I’m sure that she would be able to make a little bit of money from the sale of some of those things. If she wanted, she could also bring in some rental income by renting out her house in Florida or the penthouse in Manhattan. If it were me, I’d live in Florida due to the cost of living being so much higher in Manhattan. Then again, if I were in the same situation, I would want to sell both and move somewhere completely different simply because of the fact that I would be afraid my neighbors (many of whom were swindled by her husband) would try to burn my house down. Then again, these assets may be liquidated sometime in the future by those looking to recover some of the money.

Overall, while she’s probably accustomed to spending $2.5 million over the course of a few months, I believe that the Justice Department was too nice and lenient in the settlement. I’m sure there are a lot of people out there who feel the same way. After all, she’s getting more than those who have nothing thanks to the ponzi scheme her husband ran.