With their opulent interiors, spectacular settings and multimillion-pound price tags, they’re the sort of houses most of us can only dream of living in.
But the keys to a property like this could be yours for as little as £10 – if you get lucky.
Since launching in the UK in April 2020, fundraising company Omaze has offered entrants to its viral monthly draws the chance to win one of these jaw-dropping houses.
So far it’s given away 39 mega properties – from a £4million country manor in Bath and a £3.5million mansion in the Cotswolds to a £4.5million luxury London townhouse – to ordinary people whose numbers came up in a lottery-style sweepstake.
Its latest grand prize is a £3million coastal property in Cornwall with breathtaking views over the Atlantic Ocean, with stamp duty, legal costs and moving fees all covered.
It even comes fully-furnished – and the winner gets £250,000 in cash. So what’s the catch?
While it might sound like a dream come true, not all Omaze houses are quite what they seem.
Impractical, remote or too expensive to live in, several previous winners have ended up selling or renting out their houses – indeed, the company now offers this as an option instead of moving in.
There have also been rumblings about the ‘curse of Omaze’, with reports of shoddy building work, flood risks and planning disputes plaguing some of the properties.
So before you picture yourself as lord or lady of the manor, take heed: here’s what’s happened to the Omaze houses after the keys were handed over…
COASTAL MANSION THAT MAY BE KNOCKED DOWN
Omaze million-pound house won this April – former Miss Wales finalist Vicky Curtis-Cresswell
Norfolk, £6million, won April 2025
As the most valuable property ever offered in a UK draw, this coastal pad in Blakeney, on the north Norfolk coast, seemed to have it all.
With sweeping views of the sea, it boasted three spacious bedrooms with vaulted ceilings, an American-style wraparound porch, wildflower gardens, tennis court, heated pool and summerhouse – as well as a modern kitchen and airy lounge.
The 5,000-square-foot house called Larkside came with £165,000 furnishings and also had access to a secluded pontoon.
Former beauty queen Vicky Curtis-Cresswell, 38, a finalist in Miss Wales 2008, said she ‘couldn’t believe’ her luck when she won the property after paying just £10 for one entry earlier this year.
At the time, she and husband Dale, 41, were looking for a rental property while living with their young daughter at her in-laws’ house in Wales.
But just a few months on, Vicky is yet to receive the keys to her dream home.
Instead she’s found herself caught up in legal wranglings, as Omaze have had to submit a retrospective planning application for parts of the property that were, apparently, built without approval.
Dale and Vicky Curtis-Cresswell celebrating their win in April – but months later and they haven’t received the keys
Discrepancies have emerged between the approved development and what was actually built – in particular a single-storey extension and a four-bay garage, as well as the summerhouse, tennis court, surrounding landscaping and pool.
If North Norfolk Council refuses the back-dated application, these features could all end up being removed.
Vicky has already revealed her plans to sell the house, but any hope of doing so and becoming a millionaire has – for now – had to be shelved.
A spokesman for Omaze said it had ‘taken every possible step to bring the issue to a swift resolution’, adding Vicky had received her £250,000 cash prize and was being regularly updated.
‘Omaze reiterates its guarantee that no house winner would ever have to incur any costs whatsoever to remedy any historical planning issue,’ they said.
‘Omaze takes all appropriate measures to guarantee that all house prizes are transferred to winners with good and marketable title.’
JAMES BOND PAD PERCHED PERILOUSLY ON A CLIFF
The modern Devon Omaze house with an infinity pool, compared to James Bond’s lair
Devon, £3million, won October 2021
A video on the Omaze website shows Glen Elmy, 54, a foundry worker from Walsall, celebrating with his family as he was announced as the winner of Stealth House, a majestic ultra-modern property on the north Devon coast.
‘I’m totally gobsmacked,’ he said at the time. ‘The only thing we’ve ever won before was £3 at a Bingo night on holiday.’
Glen Elmy and wife Debby won the seafront mansion from a £25 ticket
His prize was, certainly, remarkable: a James Bond-style residence, featuring five bedrooms, an infinity pool and breathtaking ocean views over Combe Martin Bay – it was, as he put it, ‘beyond anybody’s wildest dreams’.
Designed by award-winning architect Guy Greenfield and built in 2018, the 4,300-square-foot property had apparently lain empty for several years before Omaze snapped it up.
But after just three days, Glen handed the keys back – and demanded £3million instead.
Why? According to reports, the house was being threatened by coastal erosion, with neighbours predicting it was at risk of falling into the sea within five to ten years.
‘The corner of the house goes almost to the cliff edge,’ said one.
However, an Omaze spokesman denied the claims, saying: ‘As with all its properties, Omaze carried out extensive professional surveys, searches and inspections prior to purchasing the house in Devon.
‘Omaze can confirm that none of these reports raised any material concerns with the property, including in relation to coastal erosion. The property is fully insurable.’
WATERFRONT IDYLL THAT’S NOW A HOLIDAY HOME
The immense waterfront Cornish Omaze house with a swimming pool, hot tub and terrace
Cornwall, £4.5million, won September 2024
NHS nurse Lisa Morgan made headlines when she won Seahorses, a stunning waterfront newbuild near Falmouth, Cornwall, after spending just £25 in an Omaze draw last year – and turned up for her 11.5-hour hospital shift the following day.
Lisa and her husband Andy had spent 20 years paying off the mortgage at their Merseyside home and were saving for a ‘comfortable’ retirement – when they won the £4.5million prize.
The 4,350-square-foot property, a four-bed mansion with panoramic coastal views, a wine room, heated swimming pool, hot tub, fire pit and plush sunset terrace, was described by estate agent Knight Frank as ‘the epitome of modern coastal luxury’.
Lisa Morgan and husband Andy lived in the property for less than a year
‘We’re going to make so many memories here,’ said Lisa, 58. ‘I’ll be getting my brother on the BBQ and I can’t wait to jump in the swimming pool.’
However, less than a year later, she isn’t living in the house, but rather renting it out as a holiday home – from £3,096 a week via upmarket agency Cornish Holiday Cottages,
The decision was an easy one, she said earlier this month.
‘We didn’t want to leave it empty for long periods of time,’ she explained. ‘I want others to be able to share in the magic and make lasting happy memories here.’
LAVISH RURAL RETREAT ‘BUILT ON FLOOD PLAIN’
The sprawling multimillion pound manor near Oxfordshire had seven bedrooms and boasts the Beckhams as neighbours
Cotswolds, £2.5million, won June 2021
Darren Wordon, 49, and his wife Mandy, 48, spent just £25 on the Omaze prize draw in the spring of 2021 – and walked away with a new home worth £2.5million.
Willowbrook House, in Radford near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, boasted seven bedrooms, a stylish outdoor dining area and 2.3 acres of land.
It appeared a family haven for the Wordons, who had moved to the UK from South Africa with their two grown-up children and were living in Bath. It was, Darren said, a ‘life-changing prize’.
But despite its idyllic rural location, with neighbours including the Beckhams, Amanda Holden and Jeremy Clarkson, there were apparently issues from the start.
Darren Wordon and his wife Mandy eventually moved into the property after flooding issues, but put it on the market
An Omaze spokesman confirmed that, shortly before Darren and his family moved in, heavy rain ‘caused water to temporarily pool and back up towards the property.’
This was later fixed by an engineer, who secured the home ‘against future extreme weather events well before Darren took ownership of the property,’ they added.
Neighbours, however, insisted the house was ‘built in a valley that floods every year’.
One claimed the property itself had flooded twice before the draw (Omaze disputed one of these events, and said the other had caused ‘minor carpet damage’ after ‘exceptionally heavy rain’).
In January 2022, Willowbrook House was put back on the market – and sold for £2.15million, £350,000 lower than its Omaze valuation.
The new owners don’t appear to be living in it either: it’s currently available as a holiday let, on the website Group Accommodation, from £5,880 per week.
GLASS HOUSE THAT RESEMBLED ‘A GOLDFISH BOWL’
The Fowey-front glass house Omaze raffled. In Cornwall with river views and a private jetty
Cornwall, £4.5million, won May 2023
Widow June Smith, 74, a grandmother-of-six from Essex, was watching TV when she saw her own name announced as the winner of the Omaze draw in May 2023.
Her prize, a £4.5million family home in Bodinnick, Cornwall, with prime river views, had five spacious bedrooms, a grand reception room, wine cellar, gazebo, summerhouse and a private jetty on the sought-after Fowey Estuary.
At 5,700-square-foot, the property, called Pied Dans L’Eau, was one of the most impressive in the area, with plenty of room for June and her extended family.
But what Omaze failed to mention was the car ferry, which passed directly by the windows of the house several times a day.
June Smith said the ‘incredible’ house was a bit too big – and neighbours said it was like a fishbowl
Locals compared it to ‘a goldfish bowl,’ with one saying: ‘You couldn’t pay me to move in there.’
Another added: ‘When you go across on the ferry you can see the bed and all the furniture through the windows.’
Others joked that the glass-fronted property was in dire need of curtains.
After just one family holiday there, June – who described her win as ‘incredible’, but admitted the house was a little big – put it up for sale in August 2023.
Instead, she bought a £750,000 bungalow in the Fowey area for herself and her daughter, and paid off her three children’s mortgages.
SEASIDE HOME SNAPPED UP BY MYSTERY CELEBRITY
The stunning hidden Omaze house in Kent, accessed via a tunnel at the base of a cliff
Kent, £2.5million, won October 2022
With a cinema room, two wine cellars and four plush bedroom suites, this magnificent 9,000-square-foot property near Deal, Kent – accessed via a tunnel at the base of a cliff, leading to a glass lift – was like something out of a Hollywood blockbuster.
Indeed, actor Tom Hardy was said to have stayed there before Omaze offered it as a prize.
The opulent home, called The Gunnery (as it was built on the side of a World War Two gun emplacement), was won by an entrant called Jade from the Midlands, who described it as ‘life-changing’.
‘We are still overwhelmed but we know that this will hopefully help our family for a very long time to come,’ she said. ‘It’s beyond our wildest dreams.’
The property was apparently snatched up by a secret celebrity for £2.2million
Within months of her win in October 2022, the house – which has views over the White Cliffs of Dover and the French coastline – was back on the market.
It sold a year later, for £2.2million, £300,000 less than it was said to be worth by Omaze.
Locals said they believed a mystery A-lister had put in an offer for the property and planned to plant trees around the edge of the grounds to keep it hidden from prying eyes.
‘I’d heard it was being sold to a celebrity who wanted to try and keep it a secret,’ said one.
PROPERTY SO PRICEY IT WAS SOLD IN EIGHT WEEKS
The eco-friendly Cornwall Omaze mansion with a hot tub and five acres of land
Cornwall, £3million, won August 2022
Uttam Parmar, 58, and his wife Raki, 53, from Leicestershire, struck gold with a £25 Omaze ticket when they won a £3million house, called Waterhouse, in Cornwall’s stylish Rock.
The eco-friendly mansion, with a ‘green’ roof blanketed in moss, had four bedrooms, four bathrooms and panoramic views of the Camel Estuary, as well as a celebrity neighbour – chef Gordon Ramsay – who owns another £4million house there.
It also boasted a sun-drenched terrace, hot tub, private courtyard and five acres of land. The 4,200-square-foot property was awarded the title of ‘Best Newbuild in Cornwall’ in 2020.
Uttam Parmar and his wife Raki initially celebrated their win but instead put it on the market
But having spent time ‘chilling out’ at the house – a five-hour drive from their family home – operations manager Uttam decided to part with it.
He put it on the market with a luxury estate agent in October 2022, stating: ‘It is a fantastic house in a beautiful Cornish location, but the price of it comes with a price to keep it and we can’t afford to.
‘We considered moving there and staying there, but with all the costs, et cetera, it was a lot – so we decided to sell it.’
Having originally put it on for £4million, the price was knocked down to £3.5million – and the property is now off the market, presumably sold.
… AND THE ONE A FAMILY UNEXPECTEDLY DECIDED TO KEEP
The sprawling Ascot Omaze mansion just ten minutes from the race course
Ascot, £3.5million, February 2022
Becca Potts, 32, a new mother from London, nearly missed out on her chance to win this £3.5million five-bed property in Ascot – after her husband forgot to buy a ticket for the Omaze draw.
Fortunately, she remembered, and the family – who had an eight-month-old at the time – won the extravagant, stucco-fronted country pile, complete with lavish drawing room, orangery, three-car garage, rolling gardens and a hot tub.
Becca, a financial analyst, was living in a two-bedroom flat in east London and described the win as ‘incredible’, adding that her daughter Ava was looking forward to ‘having her first birthday in a mansion’.
However, they never planned to keep the house – and it seemed set to go the way of most other Omaze properties.
‘We always knew we were going to move in and enjoy it for at least that first summer, just to experience living in a place like this as a family,’ Becca said.
Becca Potts and husband Ben have decided to keep their stunning Ascot property
‘But after a few weeks we realised we didn’t want to leave – so decided we should keep it.’
Having the extra space for their toddler, she said, was a bonus. ‘It all feels natural now and like it really is our family home.’
An Omaze spokesman said: ‘All Omaze winners are free to decide if they live in their new house, rent it out for a supplementary income or sell it whenever they wish, to become a cash multimillionaire.
‘They can put it on the market the day they get the keys – the choice is entirely theirs.
‘Whatever their circumstances, all Omaze winners have several fantastic, life-changing options available to them.
‘Omaze is immensely proud to have created 39 millionaires whilst also raising more than £97million for good causes in the UK since it launched here.’
