angels3go Posted October 18, 2008 Report Share Posted October 18, 2008 Is it legal in the State of Michigan to offer an "essay contest" in order to have one person win and have enough money from applicants to pay off the mortgage, giving the home to the awarded essay applicant? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swirlgirl Posted October 18, 2008 Report Share Posted October 18, 2008 Is it legal in the State of Michigan to offer an "essay contest" in order to have one person win and have enough money from applicants to pay off the mortgage, giving the home to the awarded essay applicant?This really isn't a credit question. It sounds like this is a contest. You'll need to check your state's laws concerning contests and sweepstakes. But in general, why would this be any different than a contest for a new car or a free washer/dryer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firstsource Posted October 19, 2008 Report Share Posted October 19, 2008 Do you have to be a resident of MI to win? If not, then I am going to write an essay. It would be nice to have my home paid off.Charles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jq26 Posted October 20, 2008 Report Share Posted October 20, 2008 I don't know the law in MI, but I would say that this would likely NOT be legal in WI. This is different than a contest for a free car. That would be a free entry for promotional purposes and then a sweepstakes prize of a vehicle. There is no direct collection of money to join. This looks more like a "for profit" lottery situation. Everyone pays to enter. Then one person "wins" the home. If you can't run numbers legally or run a private poker game, which you probably can't, then I don't think this would fly either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swirlgirl Posted October 20, 2008 Report Share Posted October 20, 2008 Good point JQ, but there are tons of legal contests that have entry fees. In most, I would assume at least part of the entry fees go to funding the prize. I guess all of this is explained in the fine print. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jq26 Posted October 20, 2008 Report Share Posted October 20, 2008 Again, you may be right. Aside from the highly regulated gaming industry, you usually have the "no purchase necessary" tag on all sweepstakes. Even if you have to buy a sandwich to get an entry, there is always a way to gain entry for free such as by mail or internet. are you going to allow that caveat? I can't think of any entry situation where you have to pay money outside of the gaming industry. Can you give an example?I think the rules are what they are for good reason. I'm one for maximum consumer choice, but this could get ugly real quick. How do you regulate this if everyone is essentially running private lotteries? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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