$100 Raffle Could Be Your Ticket to a New Home

Millions of Americans have faced, are facing, or will face foreclosures since the booming housing market busted and the mortgage crisis set in. While President Obama is working feverishly to bring his $75 billion mortgage rescue plan to fruition, people caught in a bind right now are finding creative ways to deal with a foreclosure looming over their heads.

Take the story of one woman whose “American Dream” came crashing down on her. After Heather Gray broke up with her fiancé and was laid off from her job as a public information coordinator for Mesa, Ariz., the 33-year-old found herself in over her head and about to lose the 2,200-square-foot home she bought in 2007. Then she got resourceful.

To escape her impending foreclosure unscathed, the Air Force veteran decided to donate her house to the Murray Grey Foundation, which in turn plans on raffling off the $280,000 home for $100 a ticket. The raffle is scheduled to take place on April 11.

The non-profit foundation financially aids military families facing foreclosure — a facet of the population that saw a 217-percent jump in foreclosure proceedings in the first four months of 2008.

According to a FoxNews.com article, Gray and the foundation struck a simple deal that allows her to “walk away” from her current predicament with a clean slate:

“We made the plan to raise $500,000,” Gray says. “I need $350,000 to pay off my debts in the home that I owe, and the charity will receive at least $150,000, and anything we receive over $150,000 will go directly to Murray Grey, 100 percent.”

The raffle tickets count as a 100-percent charitable deduction and — bonus —every person who purchases a raffle ticket will receive a $500 voucher good for either food or groceries anywhere in the U.S.

But like any too-good-to-be-true deal, there’s some fine print you need to be aware of before you take a stab at it. You’re responsible for paying taxes to the government for the home as taxable income — the same way you’d have to if you won the lottery.

While this probably isn’t an ideal solution for most homeowners facing foreclosure, it seems to work for Gray. She gets the chance to support a charity close to her heart and walk away from $350,000 untouched. Broke, maybe, but debt-free.

Tags: donate house, foreclosed home raffle, home raffle, house donation, house raffle

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