Family of six raffle off their £1.15million four bedroom barn conversion with secret bar

It’s the dreamy million-pound country home with its own horse stables and secret bar which could switch hands for just £5.

Marc Bryden, 32, struggled to sell his stunning four bedroom barn conversion in picturesque Holmfirth, West Yorks, during the coronavirus pandemic.

So the father-of-four, who owns a driveway renovation firm, is now offering it up in a raffle.

Players will pay £5 a ticket for a chance to pick up the keys to the luxury home, which is only two years old and worth £1.15million. 

The country pad sits in three acres of land and comes complete with horse stables as well as its own bar accessed by a secret door.

Marc Bryden, 32, struggled to sell his stunning four bedroom barn conversion (pictured) in picturesque Holmfirth, West Yorks, during the coronavirus pandemic

The father-of-four, who owns a driveway renovation firm, is now offering the stunning £1.15million property in a raffle

The father-of-four, who owns a driveway renovation firm, is now offering the stunning £1.15million property in a raffle

Players will pay £5 a ticket for a chance to pick up the keys to the luxury home, which is only two years old. Pictured: The stunning open kitchen which opens out into the garden

Players will pay £5 a ticket for a chance to pick up the keys to the luxury home, which is only two years old. Pictured: The stunning open kitchen which opens out into the garden

The country pad sits in three acres of land (some of it pictured here) and comes complete with horse stables as well as its own bar accessed by a secret door

The country pad sits in three acres of land (some of it pictured here) and comes complete with horse stables as well as its own bar accessed by a secret door

One of the bedrooms has an en-suite and there are another two bathrooms (pictured: one of the modern-styled bathrooms) for the owners to use too

One of the bedrooms has an en-suite and there are another two bathrooms (pictured: one of the modern-styled bathrooms) for the owners to use too 

Mr Bryden bought the barn for £340,000 in 2018, when it was completely derelict, as an investment piece. It is now kitted out with its own 'secret' bar

Mr Bryden bought the barn for £340,000 in 2018, when it was completely derelict, as an investment piece. It is now kitted out with its own ‘secret’ bar

Mr Bryden spent spent a gruelling year transforming it into a luxury home, which comes with its own stable (pictured)

Mr Bryden spent spent a gruelling year transforming it into a luxury home, which comes with its own stable (pictured)

It has four bedrooms, one of which can easily be split into two, taking the total up to five.

One of the bedrooms has an en-suite and there are another two bathrooms for the owners to use too.

Mr Bryden bought the barn for £340,000 in 2018, when it was completely derelict, as an investment piece.

He spent a gruelling year transforming it into a luxury home.

Marc said: ‘When I bought it, it was completely derelict. It was really run down and had just a horse in it.

‘I spent a year doing it up and there were no end of delays to begin with. As well as that, the rain did not let up for a second when I was doing it all.

‘Because of legislative delays and mishaps, I only had one night to install all the glass in the stairway.

‘I ended up having to do it all myself before the building inspector came round to sign it off the next morning. I ended up falling asleep using a bit of carpet as a pillow.’

Marc Bryden (pictured with two of his children Blue and Indie), 32, bought the barn for £340,000 in 2018, when it was completely derelict, as an investment piece.

Marc lives at a separate property with his wife Emily, who works as a legal secretary, and their four children, Gracie, eight, Blue, seven, Elsie, five and Indie, four

Marc Bryden (pictured left with children Blue and Indie), 32, bought the barn for £340,000 in 2018, when it was completely derelict, as an investment piece. He lives at a separate property with his wife Emily, who works as a legal secretary, and their four children, Gracie, eight, Blue, seven, Elsie, five and Indie, four

The family (pictured) are raffling off 300,000 tickets which will take the total money raised to £1.5million

The family (pictured) are raffling off 300,000 tickets which will take the total money raised to £1.5million

Now the property boasts an arena for show horses to practice in as well as a double garage.

It is close to Huddersfield Sailing Club and has lake views as well as views of the town’s most popular tourist attraction, Castle Hill, which has centuries-old ruins atop.

Family man Marc lives at a separate property with his wife Emily, who works as a legal secretary, and their four children, Gracie, eight, Blue, seven, Elsie, five and Indie, four.

They are hoping to raffle off the home quickly and buy a plot of land to build their dream home on.

The family are raffling off 300,000 tickets which will take the total money raised to £1.5million.

After stamp duty, legal fees and the raffle site fees, Marc is hoping to be able to give a £50k donation to local charities.

The fairy-tale home is being raffled on Raffall.com.

The luxury pad (pictured) is close to Huddersfield Sailing Club and has lake views as well as views of the town's most popular tourist attraction, Castle Hill, which has centuries-old ruins atop

The luxury pad (pictured) is close to Huddersfield Sailing Club and has lake views as well as views of the town’s most popular tourist attraction, Castle Hill, which has centuries-old ruins atop

After stamp duty, legal fees and the raffle site fees, Marc is hoping to be able to give a £50k donation to local charities. Pictured: One of the bedrooms in the barn conversion

After stamp duty, legal fees and the raffle site fees, Marc is hoping to be able to give a £50k donation to local charities. Pictured: One of the bedrooms in the barn conversion

The family, who live in a different property, are hoping to raffle off the home (pictured: one of the hallways) quickly and buy a plot of land to build their dream home on

The family, who live in a different property, are hoping to raffle off the home (pictured: one of the hallways) quickly and buy a plot of land to build their dream home on 

The fairy-tale home is being raffled on Raffall.com, where it is described as a 'stunning five-bedroom barn conversion'. Pictured: One of the bathroom in the property

The fairy-tale home is being raffled on Raffall.com, where it is described as a ‘stunning five-bedroom barn conversion’. Pictured: One of the bathroom in the property

The advert states: ‘Unique opportunity to win this stunning five-bedroom barn conversion, complete with three acres of land, double garage, stable block and horse arena.

‘Set in the beautiful village of Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, it really is a rare opportunity.

‘It comes with breath-taking views of the valley and sailing club along with a hidden bar internally.

‘High specification throughout with exposed beams and stone work as expected in a 17th century building.

‘This dream home could be yours with no stamp duty, purchase fees or mortgage to pay.’

Stelios Kounou, owner of the competition site Raffall, said: ‘After other houses have been successfully raffled on our site recently, we are excited to host such a beautiful home.

‘We wish Marc and his family every success with their competition.’

The raffle will end on October 30th at 5pm, or when all tickets are sold.

What are the rules on raffling a home – and what happens if they don’t sell enough tickets?

What is a house raffle and how is it legal? 

Raffling off a home is becoming more and more popular with dozens taking place every year in the UK.

For the seller, the idea is to sell enough raffle tickets to cover their asking price – plus cover the cost of running it.

Most set up a website to advertise their competition and charge between £2 and £5 a ticket in order to attract as many entrants as possible – but more expensive properties can be raffled at £25 a ticket.

Once they hit their target total, they then select a lucky winner at random – but the draw must be carried out by a regulated lotto firm not the owner.

Those who want to keep the money gained for themselves must either hold a free prize draw or add a competition element to the raffle.

Competitors should have to prove their skill, knowledge or judgment in order to win the top prize.

Many people get around this by asking an incredibly simple question such as ‘what style of property is this house: A – Victorian, B – Tudor or C – Georgian’ when people pay for their raffle ticket.

Others have run spot the ball games to decide the winner.

How often do house raffles fail?

More and more raffles are failing to hit ticket targets as people become suspicious of them.

In this case the organisers will fall back on their terms and conditions.

These usually allow them to keep 25 per cent of total sales to cover their time. 

They can also deduct further reasonable running costs such as legal or PR spending.

The remaining money is then given away – but it is always smaller than the value of the home that was up for sale.

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