With entries from as far as China, Russia and even Mauritius, locals in the tiny village of Melling, nestled in the Lancashire countryside, are waiting to see who will become the next Lord and Lady Melling.
The titles come with Melling Manor, a palatial six-bedroom Georgian home that once housed shipbuilding tycoons, was used as a temporary hospital during the second world war and more recently served as a luxury hotel. But its current owner has fallen on hard times, and been forced to raffle off the sprawling manor.
Dunstan Low, the Bolton-bred son of an art teacher, bought his dream home with far-reaching views of the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales six years ago. But a year after the sale, his internet marketing business collapsed, leaving him unable to afford the mortgage repayments.
After repeated attempts to the sell the property failed, the 37-year-old had a “eureka” moment and decided to raffle off his home in a prize draw, for just £2 a ticket. Entries from Belarus to the Bronx are piled high on his kitchen island, with another large plastic box brimming with letters.
Low hopes to sell 500,000 tickets to raise money equivalent to the value of the home to avoid repossession. He has had 340,000 entries to date.
Low fell in love with the grand property, which comes complete with a ballroom, in 2011. When it was put up for repossession after its spell as a hotel, Low managed to knock the initial price tag of £1.5m down to £435,000. Low then moved in with his care worker wife Natasha, 32, their two children, Ozzy, five, and Dylan, 15, and their dog, Jonesy.
“We couldn’t believe we had this house. It was a dream come true. We’re just regular people and yet we were able to buy this grand manor,” he said.
The family spent £150,000 on renovations, which included a new bathroom and kitchen, added a cinema room, and installed a wood-burning stove and cast-iron radiators.
But shortly after moving in, Low’s internet advertising business collapsed. He could not find work in the area and began to borrow money to pay bills. Unable to keep on top of his mortgage repayments, Low decided to put the property, a Grade II-listed manor built in 1797, on the market.
But after receiving no good offers, he had his raffle brainwave. He says this is a unique chance for someone to get his property, on the borders of Lancashire and Cumbria, mortgage free for just £2. The house also comes complete with the title of Lord and Lady Melling for 12 months.
Within 24 hours of the raffle going live, Low raised £1,500. He says most people are spending up to £20 on tickets, but there are others who have spent hundreds. “We did try to sell it the conventional way, but didn’t have enough interest, so I decided to take matters into my own hands,” he said. “I was in the garden having a cup of tea and it just came to me – I knew that so many people would love to live in a home like this, but just wouldn’t be able to afford it, and that’s when I came up with the idea of a raffle.”
Low said he had to make sure that he was not in breach of gambling regulations and therefore created a free entry option in the prize draw. “I knew that people had done this before but had problems, and I needed to make sure everything was above board and legal, so you can enter for free if you wish to,” he said.
The manor first went on the market in 2014 at the price of £800,000, but there were no offers. The family then decided to move out and rented the manor out in the hope of eventually moving back in, but still they could not afford the mortgage.
Last December, they put it up for sale again at £845,000, but have had only one viewing since. At one point they dropped the asking price as low as £500,000 without receiving any offers. Low said: “I don’t know why it didn’t sell – it’s gorgeous and now someone will be able to have it almost for free.”
The property is still on the market at £650,000. He says if he manages to sell it before the raffle is over, he will instead offer money generated from the raffle as a cash prize.
Once the property has gone, Low plans to return to the simple life. Looking somewhat fatigued, he said: “All we want now is a regular home, something that requires absolutely no work – nothing fancy!”
