Assume that you idly buy a state lottery ticket while getting a doughnut at 7/11, and voila! You're a winner! You win your choice of one the five houses that will be shown.
I'll give you five houses in a state, and you vote on the house you would take.
Background rules:
Assume that your job situation won't need to change - you can find an identical job or work from home or whatever, so jobs don't matter.
Consider the house itself and the location and anything else that's important to you (schools, restaurants, lot size, etc.). Feel free to do a google map search to check out the neighborhood and the area.
You cannot sell the home. You can live in it as long as you like, but when you move out, it reverts back to the state as a prize for a future winner.
All houses will generally be in the $900,000 to $1 million price range.
All maintenance and utilities and taxes are cost-neutral compared to your current home.
If you wouldn't move into any of these homes, you can instead accept a cash prize of $50,000 (tax free).
Today's state is the northern half of California. Here are your five houses:
Carmel -
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...3_M10767-01203
Crescent City -
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...ex=CA597543812
Napa -
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...8_M21949-62320
Sacramento -
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...7_M22677-62516
San Francisco -
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...1_M20748-17593