Michigan Woman to Raffle Off Condo

18 Comments so far

1. Rich on September 26, 2008 11:38 am

   This is probably illegal, but i wouldn’t want to be the prosecutor on this case given current realities.

   Good luck with the raffle…

2. Donna on September 26, 2008 11:47 am

   It is illegall in Florida. We have created a legal site to list or win a home.I have been reading about these contests and thought the concept was good , but the means to get there needed improvement. The lottery, as sugested above, is illegal. The entry to the contest must be based on a skilled game.I read all the negative comments on the blogs about this contest and other before it.eventually, I came up with a contest that works for all. It is fair, fun and quick.It isn’t based on anyone judging and it doesn’t require lengthy writing skills. You know your standing immediatley after completeing the game. The best part of it is that anyone, can use the site to place their property up for a contest.

   Winning a Florida Dream Home is Just a Click Away (we are now accepting listings from every state)

   The PerfectPlaceContest.com home giveaway solves the real estate puzzle for buyers and sellers

   August 29, 2008/Coral Springs, FL/– Got game? For those who excel at word-jumble games, their skills may just win them a new home in South Florida.

   Donna Kalman, president of The Perfect Place, a provider of short- and long-term housing in South Florida, had several properties available for sale. In this challenging economy, she devised the concept for The Perfect Place Contest.

   “A group of Florida homeowners and I wanted to find a creative way to get these homes sold. Through a contest of skill, prospective home-seekers and investors now have the chance to win a new home, and sellers have a new way to sell their property,” said Kalman. “We wanted to find a fair, unique, and fun way to turn these properties into someone else’s dream home and have both the buyer and seller benefit.”

   Unlike other home-giveaways where contestants are required to write lengthy and subjective essays, The Perfect Place Contest requires players to earn the highest score on a skill-based, puzzle-based online game, similar to the word jumble games in the newspaper. “More people are capable of playing the game and everyone is on equal terms. You either have the highest score or you don’t,” says Kalman.

   The contests are up and running and properties currently available include:

   l A $250,000 Coconut Creek 2-bedroom/2-bath condo with vaulted ceilings, playground and tennis court, right next to the excitement and glamour of the future home of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

   l An amazing $400,000, 1-bedroom condo in Delray Beach with full upgrades and great amenities, within walking distance of the ocean.

   l A gorgeous $400,000 high-rise, upscale condo in Fort Lauderdale, with all the amenities of a 5-star hotel located right in the heart of trendy Las Olas area.

   To enter, players visit http://www.PerfectPlaceContest.com, choose the property they want to win and pay the corresponding entrée fee which ranges from $50 to $200, depending on the property. Players will have the opportunity to try a few practice games before playing. The goal is to unscramble the letters as quickly as possible to form a specific word. Immediately following play, the home-seekers’ scores and the highest score will be displayed, allowing contestants to keep track of their placement. At the end of 30 days, the player who unscrambled the word correctly the fastest will be declared the winner of the property. Players may enter as often as they wish but must pay separate entrees fees for each game, and players must be 18 years old or older.

   “Whether these prospective homeowners want an opportunity to win a vacation home, a primary home in Florida, or use it as an investment property, it’s really a unique opportunity to win a great home at a nominal fee. People play the lottery all the time against millions of odds, or pay $50 for a hand of black jack. With our game, you have even better odds of winning a real home that is fully furnished in prime South Florida locations,” said Kalman. “And because the number of entrees are capped equivalent to the fair market value of each property, no one is taking advantage of a down market. No one is price gouging. We just wanted to find a solution to the real estate situation. This way, a seller has the chance to get out of their home in a very difficult real estate market while the buyer is able to own a home for little investment. Everyone wins.”

   Eric Weldon, owner of Menu Realty Group in Fort Lauderdale, is the first realty office to utilize the website for his client. He has an oversized studio apartment in the The Q-Club in Ft. Lauderdale, just north of A1A. “This is a condo hotel that overlooks the beach. Amenities include a 24 hour fitness center and pool along with a lobby restaurant. If I were to put it on the market it would list for $550 - $600,000.”

   Weldon found out about the contest a few months ago and was eager to get his listing on there. “I’m looking to put a lot of my properties on the contest,” said Weldon. “What’s nice about the contest is that it is global. People from all over the world have an incredible opportunity to win a property in a great location.”

   Realtors or homeowners interested in listing their properties as a prize on the Perfect Place Contest website may contact Donna Kalman by visiting http://www.PerfectPlaceContest.com.
   954-255-6987
   cell 954-600-6987

   donna kalman of FL

3. Ser Greene on September 27, 2008 1:18 pm

   You can do a raffle and make it legal; you will need to connect with a non-profit in order to do so. For most states this is all that is required. Take a look at http://www.usahomeraffle.com. It is a website where you will be able to find current home raffles that are going on and if you are looking for information on how to connect with a non profit, you can also go there and connect with one that will do a raffle with you. I see USAHomeRaffle.com as the central place for finding raffle information and buying raffle tickets for ongoing raffles.

4. Meredith Gavin on October 11, 2008 4:50 am

   I live in New Hampshire and I want to raffle off my home but I dont know where to begin. Could you help me please.

   Sincerely,
   Meredith

5. Donna on October 11, 2008 7:57 am

   Meridith you can contact me at http://www.perfectplacecontest.com on the contact page or email me at myperfectplace@aol.com. We are currently taking listings for placing your home for sale on our contest web site.
   A raffle is not that simple. It is illegal in most states. If you are connected to a non-profit , as mentioned above, You must give away the home, even if you do not have enough money entered into the contest.

6. Ser Greene on October 15, 2008 3:45 pm

   Meridith, I don’t want to mislead you and I don’t want others to mislead you either. You really need to look into your state laws regarding a raffle.

   I am not sure if it is legal or not in New Hampsire, but I DO KNOW that not all raffles require that you give away your home if don’t sell enough tickets. For instance, Maryland allows you to set a break even point for your raffle. That point is set between you and the non profit/ charity. if you don’t hit that point you are not obligated to do the raffle. You must return the money to the people that purchased the tickets. That is just maryland law. I know this well, because we just completed a raffle in that state. Our site, http://www.USAHomeRaffle.com doesn’t give you the legal breakdown because we want individuals to get with Non Profits and work out the legal specific together.

   We are looking into publishing a list of states where this is legal and possibly a simpler version for people to understand, but that is still up in the air for us. Why - Because we do not want to be mis-quoted for someone doing what their state doesn’t allow. Instead, check our FAQ page, there we have a link to a gambling laws website. It isn’t always simple reading but it is a good place to start to find out about your state laws.

   Additionally, you can add yourself to our email list and if we eventually do the ’state laws list’ we will let you know by way of email

   I hope this reply helps you and many others that have questions. Raffling homes has really take off in the past few months.

   Have A Great Day

7. Cassandra on October 30, 2008 12:01 pm

   Donna good luck!

8. Donna on October 30, 2008 12:51 pm

   Thanks CassandraorWe are currently featuring 3 new contests. One is in MO. It was listed by a couple that has to move from their gorgeous 4000 sq ft custome homelocated on 60 + acres. Due to a job layoff and now a transfer , they must move to Atlanta . We are anxious to help then with their situation and hope players will find the $25.00 entry fee a great chance to own this home. The second is a Condo hotel loacted on Ft. lauderdaale beach. It is a really unique oppertuntiy to collect an income of $6500.00 per quarter and also usethe property when you want a vacation in a beautiful condo managed by Hilton . All this for the very small entry fee of $10.00
   Lastly, A chance to live rent free for one year. in a two bedroom two bathroom condo in Delray Beach , Fl.It is 3 years new and located 1/2 mile from the beach. If you don’t want to stay all year , rent it out and collectall the money. You have no expenses to pay at all!!! Again just $10.00
   Good luck to all!!

9. Unscramble Some Words, Win a House | Zillow® Blog on November 11, 2008 6:13 pm

   [...] heard of contests that require you to write an essay and win a house. Or homes that are sold in a raffle. They usually go up in flames, but down in Florida, a real estate investor seems to have come up [...]

10. myrtle beach rentals on January 3, 2009 3:19 pm

    this is probably one of the most creative ways I have saw to sell a condo. but you are right who is going to prosecute?

11. Kelly on February 12, 2009 8:38 am

    My mother-in-law told me 6 months ago to try and get people to submit essays to try and win our house in Nashville, TN but I thought it was a terrible idea. My husband and I still have the house for sale and had to move to Virgina so we are paying for two places to live. We are desperite to sell the house but it is not moving. Would the essay thing be legal in TN?

12. christian larrazabal on March 26, 2009 12:50 pm

    Donna, is it legal in Florida to raffle a home, i have an investment property, i had this idea about 7 mos. ago i saw it on cnn, but did not know how to go about it, i will appreciate your help

13. Rick Wallace on April 3, 2009 7:41 pm

    For anyone interested, there is now a book about home raffles (written in the U.S.) titled, “The Home Raffle Book” and is located at http://www.thehomerafflebook.com. It’s a must read for anyone conducting or participating in a home raffle and includes a sample business plan.

14. soycle on April 10, 2009 11:33 am

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15. Elaine on April 26, 2009 7:12 pm

    I am interested in a home raffle. I live in Michigan and know that a there have been a couple of successful raffles here. I have had my house on the market for a year with very few showings. I realize the current economy is the biggest issue. I have lowered my price to the lowest price possible, as it is I will have to come to closing with my realtors commission. I just feel very hopeless. The home appraised for more than I bought it for and I have done several major upgrades. But the appraisal was 3 1/2 years ago. The amrket was much different then.
    From what I have read, I would need to find a non-profit organization that has a charitable gaming license. Can anyone tell me if that is correct? I also need to find out if there is a time limit to have tickets sold? Thanks!

16. Cindy on September 11, 2009 10:04 am

    Is this going to be an Online Raffle? I’ve heard about people raffling off their house before, but I don’t know if that is something that is done online or if it is something advertised to people who are interested. Would be interesting to know.

17. Tony on October 5, 2009 7:44 am

    This not illegal in Michigan.
    You have to follow The State Law guidlines.
    I don’t know if she followed ALL the guidelines, but what is stated in the article is legal under Michigan Law. RESEARCH YOUR STATE LAW.
    Thank you,
    Tony

18. nancy on October 13, 2009 11:17 am

    My ex-spouse has consistantly stated find another place to live for the past year. His home I am living in has lost substantial amount of value. He cannot get a lender to refinance this home. Further, told me to take our kids and move out because he will give no notice as to when he is stopping mortgage payments. I am currently, fighting to keep my job but I have been removed from job on August 28, 2009. I have no choice but to have my ex raffle this house off or walk away and take my kids to shelter. I want to learn more about legally raffling the home I am in for my ex as soon as possible. Please contact me… As of this moment I have a negative cash flow, asked for help from unemployment and welfare departments. They tell me to fill out forms and wait 45 days. I told them I donot have a minute to wait. I have two minors living with me, we need to make our weekly doctors appoinments and medication daily. I donot want the banks and investors to win. Because they will use it to their advantage and fill their pockets with green where there are families out there like me that need assistance.