HOUSE raffles have boomed in popularity – and they could be the key to you becoming the owner of your dream home for just a few quid.
These property competitions are prize draws, which you can enter for free, or by buying at least one ticket.
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The winner is then drawn at random on a specified date and is given the advertised home as a prize.
Of course, the chances of winning are slim, but if you’re one of the lucky ones, scooping your dream home can be life-changing.
Simon Williams, 41, scooped the picturesque cottage in Devon and £100,000 cash to spend after entering the Omaze Million Pound House Draw.
While Rose Doyle, 73, and husband Tony were able to move out of their three-bed council house in Birmingham after winning a £3million mansion in Cornwall.
But before you buy a ticket to win your dream home, it’s important to bear in mind the pros and cons.
Consumer expert Martyn James said: “There’s nothing wrong with having big dreams or fantasising about getting a brand new house of a big cash payout. But bear in mind that lotteries are a form of gambling and as such, can be addictive to many people.
“So set yourself a maximum spend and never go over it – and be realistic. Whenever you gamble, the house always wins.”
We round-up all the current house raffles – and how you can win a property worth up to £4million with just a £2 ticket.
£2million home in Devon – Omaze
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A stunning three-bedroom coastal home in Devon worth over £2million could be yours in Omaze’s million pound house draw.
One lucky winner will get the keys to a beautiful contemporary home and entries start from as little as £10.
This two-tiered West Country residence comes complete with countryside views, a guest annex and a heated pool.
In addition to the property itself, the Omaze winner will receive £250,000 in cash to help them settle in.
The winner has the option to move straight into the property, or they can rent it out, or even put it back on to the market.
An estimated monthly rental income is around £4,000, according to Omaze.
Additional costs including stamp duty, mortgage fees and conveyancing costs are also covered.
The house also comes fully furnished.
The cost of entries starts at £10 for 15 entries and goes up to a costly £150 for 320 entries. The full details are below:
- £10 – 15 entries
- £25 – 40 entries
- £50 – 85 entries
- £150 entries – 320 entries
Omaze has guaranteed a minimum donation of £1,000,000 from the draw for suicide prevention charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM).
The Draw closes on Sunday, October 27 for online entries and Tuesday, October 29 for postal entries.
Watch our for property raffle scams
IT always pays to be wary of scams when entering competitions like this.
Senior Consumer Reporter Olivia Marshall explains how you can spot a scam.
If a house raffle isn’t for a charity or on a reputable platform, be wary.
There have been reports in the past of these raffles collapsing and questionable practises around who wins.
You could always check with an organisation like Trading Standards or the Gambling Commissions before entering.
To report a misleading advert call the Advertising Standards Agency on 020 7492 2222.
If you’ve paid for a ticket with no chance of winning or the prize keeps changing report the draw to Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
£4million home in Surrey – Raffle House
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Raffle House allows people the chance to win either their multi-million pound dream home.
You may have heard about Raffle House, which was established in 2017, but might not know what it entails, or how to get started.
The company operates by selling raffle tickets for a small fee and then selecting a winner randomly.
The current Raffle House prize is a £4million property in Surrey, complete with £200,000 of furnishings.
The kitchen and family room overlook and have access to a garden terrace, perfect for alfresco summer mornings.
The dining room and living room both have huge glazed sliding doors, perfect for taking in the sun while keeping warm.
There are five bedrooms in total, with the principle featuring its own private bathroom.
If all this wasn’t enough, there’s also a private gym.
As with the Omaze draw, there’s no Stamp Duty or fees to pay for the winner.
If you want to be in with a chance to win, the draw closes at midnight on Thursday, October 31 and it costs the following to enter:
- £10 – 15 tickets
- £25 – 50 tickets
- £50 – 150 tickets
- £100 – 500 tickets
£450,000 apartment in London – Raffall
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Homeowners and organisations can pay to host their own raffle on a portal such as Raffall.com.
Users have a web page which advertises their property, the maximum tickets they will sell, the price and the closing date.
Raffall draws the winner at random.
If the owner doesn’t sell enough tickets to make the raffle a success, the platform gives 75% of the money as compensation to the winner and keeps 25% for commission and costs.
The two-bedroom apartment in Catford, south east London is valued at over £450,000 and is being raffled by Kerb Appeal Raffle through Raffall.
Once a neglected and rundown property, the apartment has undergone a dramatic transformation.
A brand-new kitchen and bathroom has been installed, plus it has a striking glass banister in the entrance hallway, and stylish, trendy interiors ready for immediate occupancy.
Entries cost £2 and the raffle draw will take place on Friday, November 8 at 12pm or when the last ticket is sold – whichever comes sooner.
£1.2million Town House in Somerset – Raffall
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This seven bedroom property in Frome, Somerset, is also being raffled off by Raffall.
There’s no stamp duty, mortgage or conveyancing fees to pay and you chose to rent it out, sell it on or move in.
You could earn £3,500 per month by renting the property out, according to the raffle’s host Taylormade.
The property measures 3,000 square and has oak wood flooring, bespoke lighting, high-end fittings, premium wool carpets and encaustic tiling.
It is set in a generous plot with a the stone walled garden, which is perfect for entertaining.
It can be accessed directly from the main dining kitchen area through two sets of glass doors.
There is also road parking, with space for four cars.
Entries cost £5 and the draw will close on Saturday, December 7 at 11pm, or when the last ticket is sold – whenever is sooner.
In addition, 10% of the host’s revenue goes directly to the charity Busoga Trust, which brings clean and safe water to rural communities in Uganda.
£850,000 home in East Sussex – Raffall
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This Idyllic Country House in Sedlescombe, East Sussex, is set within large gardens close to the historic town of Battle.
It has its own heated swimming pool and is close to beaches in Hastings, Bexhill-On-Sea and Camber Sands.
Plus, there’s no stamp duty, mortgage or conveyancing fees to pay.
Tickets for this raffle cost £5 and 5% of the host’s revenue goes directly to Alzheimer’s Research UK.
The draw ends on Friday, 10 2025 at 5.30pm or when the last ticket is sold.
£25,000 narrowboat – Raffall
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It’s not just houses that pop on these rafffles, you could even be in with the chance to set up home on a narrowboat.
The boat, called Sloe Patrol, has been restored over a four-year period with a new fully fitted kitchen, a bathroom with a shower and a bedroom with an extending king size bed and storage space.
The raffle’s host – James Posner – said that while the boat is currently worth around £25,000, he expects its value to increase to £40,000 over the next few years.
The raffle ends on October 16, or when the last ticket is sold.
Tickets for this raffle also cost £5.
Houseboats are exempt from stamp duty, and if you have a residential mooring and you fill fall into the lowest council tax band.
What should you check before entering?
National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team advises entrants to make sure they are aware of the terms of the raffle before entering.
The advert should explain what happens if not all tickets are sold. It should spell out if a lesser cash prize is offered, when the raffle closes and when the draw will take place.
If the date of the draw keeps changing the organiser is struggling to sell tickets.
Check the odds of winning. Competitions that specify the number of tickets they need to sell give you a chance of working out the odds.
Look for hidden bills. Lots of adverts state that stamp duty and legal fees will be paid for. If they don’t you need to foot the bill.
Check you can afford the maintenance and council tax for the house too.
Before handing over your cash, read past reviews of the organiser’s raffles, look at how long they’ve been established and whether there have been previous winners.
If it’s a homeowner hosting their first raffle, then it’s a case of buyer beware.
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