I won £2million 17th century farmhouse in an Omaze prize draw a year ago - and heres why I decided to keep it and move in
A mother who won a £2million Omaze home has revealed why she kept it despite many previous winners choosing to sell up within the year.
A mother who won a £2million Omaze home has revealed why she kept it despite many previous winners choosing to sell up within the year.
Eliza Yahioglu, 57, who was celebrating her birthday in Luxemburg when she discovered shed scooped the picturesque farmhouse near Harrogate in Yorkshire.
She had the option to either live in the house, rent it out or sell the beautifully renovated 17th century hillside mansion.
But she instantly fell in love with it and decided she was going to keep it as well as also bagging £100,000 in cash.
She has now revealed how surreal it feels every day - and how they have enjoyed a big family Christmas of 16 people since the win last August.
Eliza Yahioglu inside her £2m Omaze house near Harrogate in Yorkshire after winning the prize draw last year
Aerial shot of the picturesque farmhouse that Eliza said she instantly fell in love with it
The Omaze prize draw of the 17the century home also raised £1,950,000 for Blood Cancer UK
It comes after the MailOnline previously found that most winners end up selling after less than a year of owning their mega mansions because the £100,000 prize barely covers the annual cost of running the properties.
However, Eliza says she lets family friends use the house and allowing her kids also bring home their university friends to enjoy the palatial property.
They are also planning on having people affected by blood cancer to come and stay at the house in between treatments.
The house, located close to the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, came mortgage free with all stamp duty and legal fees covered.
She said: I cant believe its been a year already, it feels like only yesterday - its still sinking in now if Im honest.
She was born in Yorkshire and is over the moon to now own a home near her childhood roots after moving to London for work almost 40 years ago.
I just couldnt believe Jo from the Omaze TV adverts was standing outside my front door.
Eliza has been married to husband Gokhan for 30 years and the couple have two children, Carl, 24, who manages a bar - and Leyla, 21, who is studying biomedical science at the University of Sussex in Brighton.
I cant believe its been a year already, it feels like only yesterday - its still sinking in now if Im honest, Eliza said.
Eliza has been married to husband Gokhan for 30 years and the couple have two children, Carl, 24, and Leyla, 21
I was on holiday celebrating my birthday when we found out - so many thoughts went running through my head when we got the video call to say wed won the house.
I just couldnt believe Jo from the Omaze TV adverts was standing outside my front door.
I was convinced there mustve been a mistake and theyd called the wrong person - then I started to realise something really big was happening – all of that in 30 seconds - it was crazy!
My husband had a tough job topping that for my birthday this year - although the weekend in Stockholm was a lovely one. The ABBA museum almost swung it!
On her new home she added: The house is amazing, even nicer than it looked in pictures.
As soon as I walked through the front door, it stopped being a house and immediately became our home.
Although I still come downstairs some mornings and do a double take because I cant believe Im actually standing in my kitchen, its still very surreal at times!
Ive loved returning home to my Yorkshire roots, my accent definitely comes back stronger as soon as I hit the A1!
Its so nice that my children get to have a genuine connection to the area where I grew up - thats been a wonderful experience.
Ive lived in London for almost 40 years, but Im a proud Yorkshire lass at heart. Some of my family are still based up here.
Wed always dreamed of having a place in Yorkshire one day, close to what Ive always called home - now that dream has come true!
Weve loved having friends come up and stay with us, as well as letting them use it with their families too - its a home thats built for sharing.
We had 16 people here for Christmas, thank goodness it came with an Aga to cope with all the Yorkshire puddings!
The kids have stayed here with all their friends from university - the house looked pristine after theyd left so theyre welcome back anytime! We all just love it up here!
On the local community she said: Everyone in the area has been so welcoming, we love all our neighbours, its a real community up here.
We absolutely adore the local pub The Queens Head in Kettlesing - the landlords Louise and Glen are real legends, even giving us a lift home after a long lunch!
She added: Winning something so valuable in bricks and mortar is brilliant - I joke that Id have burned through the money if Id won it in cash!
This house is something we can all enjoy together as a family - and is a lasting legacy for my children - its something that will help their futures.
The win means Ive already been able to help my son get on the property ladder. Im also looking forward to retirement even more now!
Some people I speak to say they thought Omaze was a scam, but I assure them and anyone else that its definitely real.
Youve got to be in it to win it, and I wish everyone who enters the next Omaze House Draw in Yorkshire the best of luck.
The Omaze Million Pound House Draw also raised £1,950,000 for Blood Cancer UK.
She added: It was very special to see how much was raised for Blood Cancer UK - it was such an incredible amount of money.
Were planning on having people and families affected by blood cancer to come and stay at the house in-between treatments - they can have the place all to themselves and just get away from it all.
The £1,950,000 raised from the second partnership went to blood cancer researchers across the UK from the South to North West, helping to further develop research into hard-to-treat blood cancers.
This included research projects investigating treatment types that could be more effective and potentially less harmful, particularly for younger people.
Helen Rowntree, chief executive of Blood Cancer UK, said: Were delighted that the Omaze Million Pound House Draw in Yorkshire raised a fantastic £1,950,000 for Blood Cancer UK.
The money has now been invested into research via the Omaze x Blood Cancer UK Research Fund and its allowing us to fund six projects all focused on developing kinder and less toxic treatments, giving hope to people with blood cancer.
These projects include new ways to treat blood cancer in children.
Thank you to everyone who has supported Blood Cancer UK and made this research possible through the Omaze Million House Pound House Draw!
James Oakes from Omaze, said: Were delighted that Eliza has settled into her new home and is loving life in her native Yorkshire.
Omaze is a win-win for both charities and entrants. By offering incredible prizes, like the beautiful house in Yorkshire, we give people the chance to win amazing houses, while also introducing charities to audiences they wouldnt usually be able to reach.
Were incredibly proud that the Omaze community has already raised over £56 million for good causes across the UK.
The latest draw guarantees that one lucky person will win a beautiful house in Yorkshire, worth over £2,500,000, along with £250,000 in cash.
The winner of the second Omaze Million Pound House Draw, Yorkshire, will get the keys to an 18th century Georgian country house boasting six-bedrooms, acres of gardens and a spa pool, as well as its own paddocks, stables and state-of-the-art equestrian facilities.
The second 18th century home in Yorkshire up for grabs in the Omaze Million Pound House Draw
In addition to winning the Grand Prize, people who enter online by midnight on Sunday. September 15 (Tuesday. September 17 for postal) are also in with the chance of winning a Mercedes AMG GT, worth over £160,000, plus £150,000 in cash.
As well as making its grand prize winner a multi-millionaire, Omaze has guaranteed a minimum donation of £1 million for charity partner Mencap.
The draw is backed by actress Jodie Whittaker, who hails from Yorkshire.
Draw entries for the Omaze Million Pound House Draw, Yorkshire, are available now at omaze.co.uk.
The draw closes on Sunday, September 29 for online entries and Tuesday, October 1 for postal entries.
Entrants can also choose to subscribe to Omaze to be automatically entered into every gtand prize and early bird prize draw each month.
Omaze subscribers receive four times the number of entries compared to non-subscribers and can cancel their subscription at any time.
Elizas winning entry cost her just £25 as part of her monthly Omaze subscription.
