You can own a home in Northern Virginia for just $200. No, you’re not dreaming, Paula and Robert Welsh are selling their home — located at 1200 Prince Edward St. in downtown Fredericksburg — through an essay contest.
Innovative Essay Contest Idea
The contest runs through September 30 at 8 p.m. It requires a $200 fee to enter a 250- to 500-word essay on why the interested party wants to live in downtown Fredericksburg. All essays must be original work, with no use of AI or plagiarism, and no co-authored entries are permitted. Participants can submit up to five entries, but five separate $200 entry fees and five separate essays are required.
“We love downtown Fredericksburg, especially the walkability,” Paula Welsh says. “My husband walks our dog twice a day and people know our dog more than they know us.”
Despite loving the area, the Welshes, who moved to Fredericksburg in 1999 from Pittsburgh, are moving to a home with a bigger yard to accommodate their son and two grandchildren, who live with them. Their grandchildren both have autism, so more space to be outside was a necessity. Luckily, they are not moving far, just a few blocks away.
Helping Community Nonprofits
The contest will be judged by a panel of representatives from two local nonprofits: the Fredericksburg SPCA and Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank. Both organizations are set to get six-figure donations if the contest sells at least 15,000 entries.
The specific number of entries is to make sure enough money is raised to cover the $1.8 million sales price and contest expenses. Prize taxes for the winner will also be covered.
“We’re getting a lot of people on Facebook talking about the contest, but they are clearly not reading the FAQs on the website,” Welsh says. “They are talking about how they would have to pay huge amounts of tax on the prize, which is true, but the reason why our minimum of 15,000 entries is in place is because of our contest expenses.”
Home Contest FAQs
“What we are trying to do is pay the taxes on behalf of the winner,” she adds. “Unfortunately, we have to pay taxes on top of the winner’s taxes.” The IRS does a “gross up,” which is in the FAQs on the contest website. It explains how the Welshes are providing up to $900,000 in cash to cover those taxes.
Still, chances are for most, that amount still won’t cover all the taxes. So it’s important to budget for them if you decide to enter the contest.
The six bedroom, four-and-a-half bath home measures 5,800 square feet and includes a large eat-in kitchen and finished basement. The historic property previously served as the site of the City of Fredericksburg Men’s College and a medical clinic. In 2004, the home was severely damaged in a fire. It was rebuilt 13 years ago in a complete remodel. More details about the home are available on Homes.com.
