Imagine winning the lottery, and the grand prize isn’t a lump sum of cash but a shiny new home with all of the latest upgrades. Or, instead of winning the grand prize, you have the option to win a huge variety of smaller prizes, from a new car to cash to a weekend getaway.
And the best part of all, the money you spend on tickets for this lottery goes toward a good cause, like helping to fund a hospital. Lotteries like the Calgary Hospital Home Lottery raise hundreds of thousands of dollars. That money goes towards helping the Calgary hospital make investments in critical care and life-saving services.
If this type of charitable donation appeals to you, a charity lottery might be an excellent way to support good causes in Canada while also allowing you to win your dream home.
Where to Buy Charity Home Lottery Tickets
Charity home lotteries are very popular in Canada, with some, like the QE2 Home Lottery or the Princess Margaret Home Lottery, raising millions of dollars for local hospitals across Canada. There are currently 41 charity sweepstakes that offer homes, cottages or condos as their big-ticket prize. Most of these fundraisers are open to residents of the provinces in which they are held, so we’ve created a complete list to help you find the home lotteries in your province.
You can use this searchable database to find lotteries currently selling tickets, sweepstakes with the best odds, or the charity lottery that supports your favourite cause.
What Kind of Homes Can I Win?
There are 37 charity home lotteries in our database, and each one of them offers a unique house, condo, or cottage that you can win. Most fundraisers that give away homes are based in a specific city, and the house, condo, or cottage that you can win is relatively close to that city. The values of the homes that you can win vary dramatically, depending on the location. The types of homes also range from smaller cottages and condos to expansive multi-floor show homes.
What Other Prizes Can I Win?
Charity home lotteries don’t just have a single grand prize. They often also have additional bonuses available for users to win. Most have several runner up prizes that include:
- Cars
- Cash
- Vacations
- Leisure activities
- Merchandise
- Services
- Gift cards
How Much Do Tickets Cost?
Most lotteries in Canada operate using the following format: draws run weekly or multiple times per week with multi-million dollar cash prizes. The cost to enter these draws is low, often only a few dollars, but the odds of winning are also low.
On the other hand, charity home lotteries run once per year, and ticket costs are higher, usually between $25 – $100. Charity home lotteries often offer lower ticket prices earlier in the year (called early bird pricing), and prices rise as the draw deadline approaches. The number of tickets available is capped, and there are hundreds of prizes drawn from the same pool of tickets.
This format means you have a good chance of winning a prize from your ticket. For example, the Princess Margaret Lotto in Ontario has 40,833 prizes, and 1,000,000 tickets available, resulting in a 1 in 25 chance to win a prize.
Where are Charity Home Lotteries Held?
Charity home lotteries are held across Canada, from British Columbia to Nova Scotia. Our research has led us to find lotteries in the following provinces:
- British Columbia
- Alberta
- Saskatchewan
- Ontario
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- Nova Scotia
- Prince Edward Island
- Newfoundland and Labrador
Can You Claim Lottery Tickets on Taxes?
You might be wondering, is my dream home lottery tax deductible? The short answer is no. In Canada, you can donate to a charitable organization and claim that donation on your taxes. The claim will net you a non-refundable tax credit which means you can reduce your total taxes owed. While home lottery tickets are charitable donations, they aren’t tax-deductible because there is a chance of winning a prize. However, on the positive side, your winnings are considered a windfall in Canada and are not subject to taxation.
