Your 41, you have a high school diploma, some college, no degree, no children, no debt. No chemical addictions, no criminal record, no debt. You have a drivers license, a car, speak three languages but your homeless with $100k to your name. What would you do to earn a living?
Or a very international city, like New York. There's probably some variation of cities depending on the languages. Thinking from a US perspective, knowing Japanese or Mandarin might be more helpful in Seattle or San Francisco where German or Arabic might be more helpful in New York or Washington.
The reason I would pick resort town is because I would just do staff accommodations at the hotel which are normally really cheap. Also meaning I wouldn't be stuck anywhere really. It's super easy to find work and usually that work is a 5 minute walk away. It's also really easy to save money assuming I'm not spending it all on cocaine in my 40's.
Get a cheap and small apartment. Get a job. And honestly just sit on the savings until you have a routine, and a life for yourself where you are earning also. Think of it like a safety net and a "bonus", not a lottery ticket. There's nothing you could do with that money to retire on or anything. It's a lot, but it's not that much these days. Even if someone gave you some smart investment opportunity it could just as easily end up with you having half that money, or none of the money, as it would gaining profit. Maybe use the money for education, or invest it in a secure low-risk fund, something like that. But the key is to get a place to stay, get off the streets, and get that shit in a fund where it isn't liquid. At least most of it. Get a job, get your own life together, and just save that money. Sure, maybe spend a LITTLE of it on yourself. Get yourself a nice place and maybe buy a TV and a laptop or something. But put the rest away.
There will be significant hurdles to easily obtaining a cheap and small apartment. Most want pay stubs, credit checks, previous residence, etc. There is a definite potential problem here if OP truly has the cash, but isn't actually generating income. That can cause him to disqualify for housing like apartments - which sucks, so long as he really has the cash. Why need to show you are bringing in income when you have a nest egg big enough to pay rent for years?
For the relatively sound reason that a bank statement really says nothing about what sort of expenditures the account is responsible for. In fact it basically proves nothing. I had an extra hundred thousand dollars in my bank account just last month, through various circumstances, but it was only nominally mine to spend. Additionally, tenants with jobs have likely already passed through character checks, criminal record checks and so on. Tenants with 100k possibly haven't. A holdover in an extended stay motel is the answer here.Why need to show you are bringing in income when you have a nest egg big enough to pay rent for years?
That's a great question! Honestly, the first thing I do is get off the street because exposure is dangerous. I would need a cheap apartment and some type of minimum wage job. The challenge is getting both of those at the same time though because I have no fixed address and no proof of employment. With the car I might be able to make decent money in pizza delivery and be able to pay for insurance that way. With the three languages, I would then look for another, higher paying job where that could be an asset. Maybe a bank teller? Tour guide? The $100k is a huge asset if I ever decide to go to college but it doesn't really go far when it comes to financial independence.