Woman says what it is wish to win an Omaze home as she ‘watches Strictly in cinema room’
A woman entered a life of luxury after bagging herself a whopping £3million house during an Omaze Grand Prize, but decided to maintain some normality in her life
One woman who won an Omaze house revealed she will never have to worry about paying her bills again, as she entered into a life of luxury with her new property.
Catherine Carwardine, 62, won the £3million Omaze Grand Prize in 2022, which saw her scoop a six-bedroom house overlooking Lake Windermere. She is an NHS worker and had never seen that amount of money. Adding to this, the house came mortgage free, with all stamp duty and legal fees covered. When she first received the house, she had the choice of either living there, renting it out for a supplementary income or selling it.
Catherine, who bought her winning entry on Valentine’s Day for just £20, “fell in love” with the spectacular house as soon as she walked through the door, so decided she had to keep it. She said: “I can still remember the moment we found out about the win, it was April’s Fools’ Day and we were away when we got the call, so we thought the kids were playing a prank on us at first.
“But then we soon realised we’d actually won a £3m house – and we were just in total and utter shock. When we got back home the children greeted us on the driveway with champagne spraying everywhere, we felt like F1 drivers!
“When we’re here, we use the cinema room all the time – not just for movies, it’s where I snuggle up to watch Strictly too. We spent the first Christmas up here with the children making some magical memories.”
Catherine noted that her house came fully furnished and boasts a terrace with breath-taking views of the lake itself, cosy log fires, a cinema room, sauna, steam room, state-of-the-art gym, staggered gardens and a workshop.
On renting the property out she said: “We let the property out when we’re not using it to generate some extra income, people love coming to stay in an Omaze house. Lots of them actually entered the draw for this house, but obviously didn’t win, and say staying in it is the next best thing.
“The money we get from renting it out has been life changing. It helps all our children and is paying off the mortgage on our house in Telford faster.
“I’ve worked for the NHS for 40 years and even though winning this prize has been so life changing, I love my job so much I’m still working. You don’t do it for the money, so winning hasn’t changed my motivation to keep going.”
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