Here's a story a reader sent me about past NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar and how he's fallen on tough times. Despite the fact that he's made a boatload of money, he recently declared bankruptcy. Yes, you can spend it all.
The article doesn't say how much he made during his career, but it leaves hints that show it was a good amount. For instance:
Kosar was one of the smart ones. He graduated from the University of Miami in 2 ½ years. Smart enough to help build several businesses after football, with a 6 percent interest in a customer-service outsourcing company that sold for more than $500 million.
How much has he lent teammates over the years without being repaid? ''Eight figures,'' he says.
Friends and family? ''Eight figures,'' he says.
Charities, while putting nearly 100 kids through school on scholarships? ``Well over eight figures.''
Ok, so he made enough to hand it out without much problem. But in addition to being generous, he was quite a spend-thrift. This sentence summarizes the situation:
And even the live-in maids had assistants.
Plus, he's surrounded himself with people with people that seem less than honest:
He says financial advisors he loved and trusted mismanaged his funds, doing things like losing $15 million in one quick burst. There's a $4.2 million judgment against him from one bank. A failed real-estate project in Tampa involving multi-family properties. A steakhouse collapsing with a lawsuit. Tax trouble.
And despite the fact that he's a smart guy, it seems he didn't really know or care much about handling his own money:
His finances have never been something he controlled. Dad would handle the bills; the son had to handle the Bills.
And now, to top it off, there's an expensive divorce:
He says the divorce has cost him between $4 and $5 million already.
''That's just fees,'' he says. ``And they keep coming. Attorneys charge $600 an hour just to screw things up more.''
So, despite the fact that he made tens of millions and had some good business dealings that brought him even more, he managed to go through all of it. You certainly can spend more than you earn, no matter how much you earn. This story is simply another one to add to my ever-growing list illustrating this fact.
But at least Kosar still has a good attitude and he had a fun ride while it lasted:
''Let me tell you something, bro,'' he says. ``It was all worth it.''
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