In a buyer's market such as this, it's hard for a lot of homeowners to sell their houses. So people are calling our office asking if they can hold a raffle to unload their house. They might charge $1000 a ticket, hoping to get 150 or 200 people to buy tickets - thus raising $150,000 or $200,000. Then they hold a random drawing to determine the winner.

The answer is no. This would be an illegal game of chance under Missouri's gambling law. An illegal raffle is defined by three things:

• Purchase is required to enter (the $1000 ticket)
• Winner is determined by chance (random drawing)
• Winner wins something or value (house)

You can only legally hold these raffles in Missouri if you're a charitable or religious organization, designated by the federal government.

So then some people think up ways they hope will get around the gambling law - hold a contest to see who wins - such as a letter-writing or essay contest. They argue that's a game of skill - not chance - so it's now legal. That may be a hard sell. All we can say is be prepared to defend yourself in court if a law enforcement agency challenges your raffle, calling it an illegal gambling operation.