The head of Omaze has indicated that the company might need to start constructing luxury homes for its well-known prize draws due to a shortage in the supply of upscale homes, which he attributes to Britain’s growing number of nimbys.
Californian businessman Matthew Pohlson says houses of the quality and size that people have come to expect from Omaze draws are in short supply.
He points to strict planning regulations and the objections from residents near potential development sites as reasons for the scarcity of large homes available for giveaways.
In a comprehensive interview, he dismissed the notion of an ‘Omaze curse,’ countering claims that winners are selling their homes because they are too costly to maintain, even though several winners have previously mentioned this issue.
Omaze was founded in the US in 2012 and came to Britain in 2020. It paused US operations in 2023 and now focuses on the UK.
Omaze allocates a substantial portion of its revenue to charity, having recently reported donating £100 million in Britain, but according to its latest public accounts ending December 2023, the company was operating at a loss due to investments in homes to give away.
It appears that its business approach, primarily focused on raffling extravagant properties, has been adversely affected by what Mr. Pohlson refers to as ‘Nimbyism.’
He stated to The Telegraph: ‘You look at the US, the UK, Australia, Germany, countries we’re either in or considering entering – the same trends, the same situation is occurring everywhere.’
Boss of Omaze Matthew Pohlson, pictured, has suggested his firm could be forced to build luxury homes to give away in its famous prize draws
Many winners place their homes on sale in fear of not being able to maintain them, including Lauren Keene, pictured, right, with her partner Ryan Mitchell
Pictured: The spectacular six-bed Hollywood-style mansion in Wirral Ms Keene won on Omaze
‘People don’t let go of these houses. And sometimes they haven’t been built. One hundred per cent we need to be building more houses.
‘If we can’t find the stuff [ticket buyers] want, we’ll have to get building.’
The company offers 12 properties each year, whittled down by more than 1,000 considered by specialists, including interior designers and property lawyers.
Some of the key locations include the Cotswold, the Lake District and the south west.
Many get canned thanks to bizarre bylaws, including one home that would have involved its owners having to allow locals to hold a carnival on the land each year.
Omaze was birthed as an idea when Mr Pohlson, from California, and his original business partner Ryan Cummins went to a fundraiser where the mega rich were bidding big money on things to win.
It then it occurred to them that other people might want to be in with a shout of winning and that the raffle should be democratised.
Early raffles offered prizes including Lamborghini blessed by the Pope, a date with George Clooney and a mentoring session with Michelle Obama, and proved a hit in the US.
Grandfather Tom Steenson, pictured left, won an amazing £2million four bedroom home including a gym, cinema and swimming pool along with £250,000 in cash in November last year
But less than two months later, it was revealed he had put the property, pictured, in Exmouth, Devon, on the market for £2.35million
After his partner walked away from the business in 2018, Pohlson decided to hone in on house draw, specifically in the UK – a country he views as being obsessed with home ownership.
Omaze donates a guaranteed £1million from each draw to its charity partners, which include the British Heart Foundation and local food banks.
Pohlson also refuted suggestions of the ‘curse of Omaze’ which suggests the salaries of many winners are too low to maintain the luxury homes they win.
Its founder said that winners are also given £250,000 cash, sufficient to run most homes for seven to 10 years.
In June it was revealed the youngest ever person to scoop a luxury Omaze mansion became the latest in a long line of winners of the property draw to decide to sell her prize.
Lauren Keene, 24, had considered moving into her six-bedroom Hollywood-style home with her partner Ryan Mitchell after she won it last December, along with £250,000.
But the full time nanny followed in the footsteps of the vast majority of winners by cashing in on the house in the Wirral, Merseyside, and putting it on the market for £2.5million, a discount of £500,000 on the original £3million valuation.
Her father Daniel Keene revealed that the couple had spent only a few nights at the spectacular house due to them living and working almost 200 miles away in Gloucester.
Widowed grandmother Patricia Moule, 81, scooped a £4million contemporary four bedroom home on the shores of Loch Rannoch, Perthshire, in April this year
But the former personnel manager from Southampton revealed when she was named as the winner that she planned to sell the house
Chris Milnes spent last Christmas with his family in a dream new-build house which he won in an Omaze draw last year (Pictured: Mr Milnes, centre right, and his wife Jules, centre left, celebrate winning with two of their children Lucy, far left, and Esme, far right)
Like many other winners of Omaze’s Grand Designs-style homes, Lauren is also said to have been put off by the expensive running costs of her new dream home.
Instead she and her Ryan, a software engineer, are buying themselves a much smaller and more practical semi-detached home in Gloucester.
All but a handful of the 39 winners of Omaze home draws in the UK, have sold or are planning to sell their multi-million pound prizes.
Many have decided their new homes are too lavish or costly to maintain, as well as often being hundreds of miles away from family, friends and familiar surroundings
Other winners have had to deal with planning consent issues or problems such as their homes being overlooked, which have not been revealed in the glossy pictures advertising Omaze draws that have raised £85million for charities in the UK since 2020.
Widowed grandmother Patricia Moule, 81, scooped a £4million contemporary four bedroom home on the shores of Loch Rannoch, Perthshire, and £250,000 in cash in April this year after buying an Omaze draw ticket for £25.
But the former personnel manager from Southampton revealed when she was named as the winner that she planned to sell the house, describing it as offering her family ‘a generational legacy’ that would secure their future.
Grandfather Tom Steenson, 63, won an amazing £2million four bedroom home including a gym, cinema and swimming pool along with £250,000 in cash in November last year.
Scottish mother-of-three Rachael Reid, pictured right, spent several months staying with her husband Darren, left, in the luxury bungalow which she won in an Omaze draw in July last year
But the couple who have been married for 30 years decided to sell the stunning building, pictured, which boasts a 40ft heated indoor pool, a gym and sauna near Farnham, Surrey, so they could move back to Scotland and be closer to friends and family
But less than two months later, it was revealed that he had put the property in Exmouth, Devon, on the market for £2.35million which is £350,000 more than the £2million valuation when he won it.
Chris Milnes, 60, spent last Christmas with his family in a dream new-build house which he won in an Omaze draw last year.
But it was revealed in January this year that he was putting the three-tiered home near Poole, Dorset, on the market for £2.3million so he could spend more time with his new grandchild in Australia.
And Scottish mother-of-three Rachael Reid, 54, spent several months staying with her husband Darren, 56, in the luxury bungalow which she won in an Omaze draw in July last year.
But the couple who have been married for 30 years decided to sell the stunning building which boasts a 40ft heated indoor pool, a gym and sauna near Farnham, Surrey, so they could move back to Scotland and be closer to friends and family.
