House in Ireland available for sale at an unusual price: $9.20, but requires a modicum of luck.
Wednesday, Imelda Collins, a resident of Northern Ireland, sells her property through an online lottery, bypassing the traditional real estate market
On the fifth of this month, Imelda Collins, a 52-year-old employee of Irish health insurance, finalized the sale of her hillside home, located on a 4000-square-meter plot near the coastal town of Sligo, to a stranger. The transaction occurred via an online lottery, an unconventional method that has shown promise in expediting property sales by avoiding bank approvals.
Many homeowners have found solace in lottery-based property sales during the pandemic, as they offer an alternative way to sell homes swiftly. This method, which bypasses the traditional real estate market, has garnered attention in recent times. In Imelda's case, she offered her modest house on a popular online lottery platform, Raffall, which facilitates these transactions.
Prior to listing her property, Imelda took inspiration from a newspaper article about an Irish woman who sold her apartment in Dublin using an online lottery to fund a move to Paris. Impressed by the idea and the success it brought, she sought to repeat the feat for her own purposes.
Imelda had initially read about Raffall on Trustpilot, a site that collects user reviews. Positive feedback and the platform's high ratings encouraged her to consider it as a viable means to sell her house. She also reached out to a compatriot in Paris who approved of her decision.
The tickets for Imelda's house went on sale in October and concluded on the 22nd of May at 10 am local time, with the draw following immediately thereafter. Imelda opted for Raffall's keys-in-hand system, which provides a streamlined process that includes ticket purchase, payments, legal compliance, winner selection, and transfer.
Launched in 2015, Raffall has facilitated over 44,880 competitions, distributing approximately 130,000 prizes and accumulating $63 million in revenue for organizers. Before Imelda's offering, 18 houses had already been sold on Raffall, with around 50 others attempting the venture without success. The gross revenue from ticket sales ranged from £400,000 to £960,000.
Stelios Kounou, CEO and founder of Raffall, acknowledges the significant growth in popularity that the platform witnessed during the pandemic. He explains that with residents stuck at home and seeking new experiences, online lotteries became a novelty that captured the public's attention. While sports teams had already adopted this practice to raise funds, real estate lotteries surprised even Raffall's creators.
In order to maintain compliance with various regulations, Raffall requires ticket buyers to answer a question correctly. For Imelda's property, the question posed was, "What color is associated with Ireland?" The available answers were red, green, pink, and yellow.
Raffall's lotteries are categorized as "prize competitions" and are not subject to regulation by the UK Gambling Commission. This classification distinguishes them from illegal lotteries that are prohibited for both commercial and personal purposes.
The Law of the Republic of Ireland governs the Raffall transactions and considers these sales as prize competitions. The beneficiaries of the lotteries have no control or influence over the draws, nor can they access the ticket revenues before the winners confirm receipt of their prizes. Only participants are able to view who else has registered and how many tickets have been issued.
In order to meet her targeted ticket sales of 150,000 at £5 each, Imelda incurred various promotional costs, such as hiring a marketing professional, a photographer, and advertising the lottery on social media and in print. Besides stamp duty and the legal fees of the winner, she is also liable for Irish capital gains tax at 33 percent and a charitable donation to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The house, complete with furniture and a 4,000-square-meter plot, costs an estimated €300,000—a figure that might have changed due to the housing crisis in Ireland. Reaching her goal of 150,000 tickets, Imelda hopes to secure around €400,000 once all expenses are paid.
Commenting on her prospective sale, Imelda acknowledged the bittersweet nature of parting with her beloved property, cherished for its rural setting and the wildlife that frequents her garden. One cannot help but share in her sentiment, as nature always finds a way to surround us.
As Imelda Collins prepares to part ways with her hillside home, her unconventional sale method has attracted attention in the realistic estate sector. By listing her property on Raffall, an online platform that facilitates lottery-based home sales, she is not only seeking to bypass traditional real estate channels but also to benefit from the lucrative world of prize competitions. This innovative approach to investing in home-and-garden properties could potentially revolutionize the lifestyle industry, as stakeholders in finance watch with interest.
