Huge jackpots are less rare — and 4 other things to know about the lottery

Lottery jackpots are soaring past the billion-dollar mark more frequently, thanks to higher interest rates and several rules changes. Here, a ticket machine displays the projected jackpot for a Mega Millions drawing in Chicago, in early January. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

If you like to daydream about what you'd do with a billion-dollar payday, Powerball and Mega Millions lotteries are giving you more chances than ever: for several reasons, eye-popping jackpots are much more likely to happen now than they were in recent years.

But that doesn't mean you're more likely to win a massive lottery prize than you were 10 years ago. It's less likely, in fact — but that isn't likely to stop anyone from buying a ticket.