Updated September 29, 2018 The dream of winning an amazing house lovingly created by some of America's most famous designers and renovators has spurred hundreds of millions of entries into each year. However, the dream also has a dark side: winning such a huge prize comes with an equally huge tax bill. The Trouble with Big Sweepstakes Wins: How to Pay the Taxes In the United States, just like any other kind of income. This is fine if you happen to win cash prizes and can simply deduct the taxes from your winnings; but with vacations and other prizes that are difficult to liquidate, you have to scrape up the money to pay the taxes. You can expect to pay sizable property taxes every year, and just paying the heating, cooling, and other utility costs on a sprawling home can cost thousands of dollars every month. However, those expenses don't mean that you should give up on trying to win the Dream Home. Even hgtv smart home 2019 entry paying their taxes, Dream Home winners come out way ahead. How can you handle that financial burden and still end up millions of dollars richer than before you won the prize. One obvious way to help pay off the costs of winning is to put that beautiful home to work for you, for example, by renting it out. This was Don and Shelly Cruz's plan when they. The 2005 Dream Home had several buildings on its property including a second stand-alone house on the shores of Lake Tyler. The Cruz family intended to either sell the lake cottage or to turn the house into a Bed and Breakfast to generate income. But zoning regulations prevented either idea from working out, and the Cruzes ended up having to put the Dream Home on the market to pay the bills. And they are not alone. Every Dream Home winner so far has done the same thing with their windfall: they either sold it or accepted a instead of taking possession of the home. Is the Dream Home Sweepstakes Worth Entering If You Have to Sell the Prize. It seems disappointing to win an amazing home and not be able to live in it. However, winning is an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Plus, even if they sell or take a cash option, the winners get to keep the designer furnishings and the cash and vehicle portions of the prize, which are substantial. When we arrived in Annapolis we were greeted by a wonderful staff that took care of all of our needs. You will eat the finest foods, visit the area's best attractions, and receive numerous gifts and keepsakes. Even after paying the taxes, smart winners have enough cash left over to live their dream, including renovating their own home to make it perfect or buying a different, if slightly less expensive, dream home. It might be helpful to avoid thinking of the house itself as the prize and instead focus on the experience and the cash that winners walk away with. The important thing about this sweepstakes is not to get fixated on keeping the home, but rather to enjoy the experience and the money and other great prizes that you will receive. It is a strange emotion. I am proud of this sweepstakes, and I want everyone to enter. It is a chance of a lifetime that everyone should risk. What happens after you win will be what you decide is best. Taking the cash option means that you would receive hundreds of thousands of dollars and won't even have to worry about finding a buyer for the house. You may be able to whittle down the tax burden by donating part of the prize, like the vehicle or the artwork, to a worthwhile charity. Most charitable, and this may help make the costs more affordable, especially combined with some of the other options. The Dream Home Sweepstakes usually gives away a large cash prize along with the home and vehicle, and you can put this cash toward the taxes. You can also try to. If you already have a home, you can try to sell that home or mortgage it. You can also try to on the Dream Home. To decide what is right for you, you should get professional help. The very first thing that you should do if you win the Dream Home Sweepstakes, or any large sweepstakes or lottery prize, is to to create a plan that will allow you to make the most of your windfall. In the meantime, you can enter contests hgtv smart home 2019 entry sweepstakes to on a budget. hgtv smart home 2019 entry
