Better Home Giveaway

Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.
Contest may only be entered in or from the 50 United States and the District of Columbia and entries originating from any other jurisdiction are not eligible for entry. This Contest is governed exclusively by the laws of the United States. You are not authorized to participate in the Contest if you are not located within the United States.

  1. How to Enter. To enter the Better Home Giveaway contest (“Contest”), go to www.home-giveaway.better.com (“Site”), read the Official Rules, complete the online entry form (including your name, mailing address, phone number, including age, email address, and the zip code where you would like to buy a home), describe where you are in your home purchasing journey (e.g., making offers, going to open houses, etc.), tell us how you heard about the Contest, and then provide an answer, in 2,500 characters of fewer (the “Essay”), to the question of why homeownership is important, your experience with the home search experience, what having a fully-paid off home would mean to you and to your community, and why you are deserving of assistance in purchasing your home (the “Theme”) and then click the “submit” button. All entry information and your Theme response shall be collectively referred to herein as the “Submissions” or each as a “Submission.” Submissions must comply with the Guidelines and Restrictions defined below. Sponsor reserves the right to cancel or modify this Contest in the event an insufficient number of entries are received that meet the minimum judging criteria. Limit one (1) Submission per person/per email address.

Twenty-five (25) finalists (each, a “Finalist”) will be selected from the initial entries. Finalists will be asked to submit a 60-second video Submission (the “Video”) that responds to the Theme.

By entering, each entrant warrants and represents the following with respect to their Submission: (a) entrant is the sole and exclusive owner of the Submission; (b) the Submission will not infringe on any rights of any third parties; and (c) any third parties appearing in or referenced in the Submission have given entrant appropriate consent to be used in accordance with these Official Rules.

Providing a Submission constitutes entrant’s consent to grant Sponsor a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display such Submissions in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media or technology now known or later developed, including but not limited to on any and all Internet media, including Sponsor’s web sites and properties and on social networking sites (i.e., Facebook, YouTube, Twitter etc.), for any legal purpose whatsoever.

All entrants must have a valid email address. No automated entry devices and/or programs permitted. All entries, including Submissions, become the sole and exclusive property of the Sponsor and receipt of entries will not be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, stolen, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible, postage-due, misdirected, technically corrupted or garbled entries, which will be disqualified, or for problems of any kind whether mechanical, human or electronic. Only fully completed entry forms are eligible. Proof of submission will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Sponsor.

  1. Start/End Dates. Contest begins at 11:59:59 PM Eastern Time on November 22, 2022 and submissions will be accepted until 11:59:59 PM Eastern Time on March 31, 2023 (“Contest Period”). Finalists will be selected on April 15, 2023, and the grand prize winner will be selected on May 15, 2023.

  2. Eligibility. Participation open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia who are at least 18 years of age or the age of majority in their state of residence as of date of entry. Void outside of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, and where prohibited, taxed or restricted by law. Employees, officers and directors of Better Holdco., Inc. (“Sponsor”), and their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, advertising and promotion agencies, manufacturers or distributors of Contest materials and their immediate families (parents, children, siblings, spouse) or members of the same household (whether related or not) of such employees/officers/directors are not eligible to enter. You are not authorized to participate in the Contest if you are not located within the United States or the District of Columbia. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply.

  3. Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions: By entering, each entrant agrees that his or her Submission conforms to the Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions as defined below (collectively, the “Guidelines and Restrictions”) and that Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may remove any Submission and disqualify an entrant from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that the entrant’s Submission fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions.

    Submission Guidelines:

  • Essay responses must not exceed 2,500 characters in length.
  • Finalists’ video responses must not exceed sixty (60) seconds in length.
  • The Submission must be primarily in English.

Content Restrictions:

  • The Submission must not contain material that violates or infringes any rights of any other party, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or any other intellectual property rights;
  • The Submission must not in any disparage Sponsor or any other person or party;
  • The Submission must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;
  • The Submission must not contain material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age;
  • The Submission must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to the laws or regulations of the United States or of any jurisdiction where Submission is created;
  • The Submission cannot promote illegal drugs or firearms (or the use of any of the foregoing), or any activities that may appear unsafe or dangerous, or any particular political agenda or message;
  • The Submission must be consistent with the image and values of Sponsor and be consistent with and satisfy the purpose of the Contest;
  • The Submission must be truthful, and must not contain any matter about the entrant or otherwise that is false or misleading in any material respect.

Each entrant acknowledges that other entrants may have used ideas and/or concepts in their Submission that may be similar in idea or concept to what is included in entrant’s Submission. Each entrant understands and agrees that he/she shall not have any claim against any other entrant or Sponsor arising out any such similarity or be entitled to any compensation because of any such similarity.
Sponsor’s decisions are final and binding in all matters relating to this Contest, including, but not limited to, interpretation and application of these Official Rules. By entering the Contest, entrants fully and unconditionally agree to be bound by these rules and the decisions of the judges, which will be final and binding in all matters relating to the Contest.

  1. Judging Panel/Judging Criteria. Between April 1 and April 14, 2023, all eligible Submissions will be judged by Sponsor or its designee. All Submissions will be judged based on Sponsor’s determination of which Submission provides the most compelling story as to why the entrant deserves to win the Grand Prize, including (“Judging Criteria”): (i) quality of entrant’s description of their home search experience; and (ii) originality of contestant’s story, including their personal life story and impact on their community. In the event of a tie, the highest score in the originality of the contestant’s story category will determine the Contest winner.

Between May 1 and May 14, 2023, each Finalist’s video submission will be judged by Sponsor or its designee, based on the Judging Criteria.

  1. Prize(s). Twenty-five (25) entrants will be deemed Finalists, and each Finalist will be eligible for $2,500 in lenders credits should they use Better Mortgage Company to finance the closing of their home purchase anytime prior to 11:59:59 PM Eastern Time on December 31, 2023.

One (1) contest winner will receive the Grand Prize. The Grand Prize consists of up to $500,000 to be paid by Sponsor towards the purchase of a home for the winner. After the winner executes all applicable prize documents, the winner will work with a Better Real Estate agent of their choice and will have sixty (60) days to enter a contract for the purchase of the home of their choice. Winner will be responsible for paying any agreed-to earnest money or good faith deposits upon contract signing, which will not be reimbursed by Sponsor. In the event that winner fails to enter into a contract within sixty (60) days, Sponsor may select an alternate Finalist as the Grand Prize winner.

Once a contract is signed, Sponsor will deposit the cost of the selected home, up to $500,000, in an escrow account with the title company that is managing the sale transaction of the home. If the home purchase price is above $500,000, and the winner chooses to obtain a mortgage in order to finance the amount in excess of $500,000, Sponsor will coordinate with the winner’s selected mortgage lender to coordinate the closing of the sale. In the event that the sale transaction does not close within 45 days, Sponsor may select an alternate Finalist as the winner.

Note: the amounts paid hereunder pursuant to the purchase of winner’s home will constitute the total prize; if winner chooses to purchase a house that is worth less than $500,000, winner will not receive the difference between the cost of the house and $500,000.

Sponsor reserves the right to perform a detailed background check on the potential Grand Prize winner to its satisfaction, including without limitation to confirm that the potential Grand Prize winner is financially able to pay for costs relating to the Grand Prize and the associated home purchase, and by entering the Contest, you hereby authorize Sponsor to perform the same in the event that you are selected as a potential winner and to disqualify you from winning in the event that the background check results are not satisfactory to Sponsor in its sole discretion.

Total approximate retail value of all prizes combined: $562,500. Prize(s) is/are non-transferable. No substitutions or cash redemptions. In the case of unavailability of any prize, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value. All unspecified expenses are the responsibility of winner(s). Real estate transfer taxes, deed recording charges, closing costs, costs for required or optional inspections, current and future real estate taxes, title insurance, homeowner’s hazard and liability insurance, and all other taxes, costs, fees, and expenses related to the purchase, receipt, ownership and maintenance of the house, including without limitation mortgage payments (if applicable) shall be the responsibility of the Grand Prize winner.

All federal, state, and local taxes, fees, and surcharges on any prize are the sole responsibility of winner of the prize. Winners of prizes with a value of $600 or more will be issued an IRS Form 1099-MISC early in the year following the year in which prize was awarded for filing with his/her federal and state tax returns. Sponsor complies with all tax reporting requirements. The amount of any tax liability will vary depending on winner’s tax bracket.

In addition to the prize awarded to the Grand Prize winner, such winner will also receive a single cash payment in the form of a corporate check that is intended to assist with any federal, state, or other tax obligations related to the prize (the "Tax Gross-Up Payment”). The amount of the Tax Gross-Up Payment will be computed based upon the actual retail value of the prize, which may vary depending on the destination and distance from winner’s place of residence, and assuming that prize winner’s combined tax rate for all federal, state, and other tax obligations related to such prize is 34%. The Tax Gross-Up Payment may not be sufficient to cover prize winner’s entire tax liability related to winning the prize, depending on winner’s tax bracket, state of residence, etc. Prize winner’s reportable winnings and the Tax Gross-Up Payment will be included on Form 1099-MISC issued to winner.

  1. Notification. On or about April 15, 2023, potential winners will be notified by email or phone and may be required to sign and return, where legal, an Affidavit or Declaration of Eligibility, Liability/Publicity Release and/or rights transfer document within five (5) days of prize notification. If any potential winner cannot be contacted within five (5) calendar days of first notification attempt, if any prize or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, if any potential winner rejects his/her prize or in the event of noncompliance with these Contest rules and requirements, such prize will be forfeited and may be awarded to the Submission with the next highest score. Upon prize forfeiture, no compensation will be given.

  2. Conditions. Submissions may be cut, edited, reformatted, rearranged, combined with other materials and/or otherwise modified, in Sponsor’s sole and absolute discretion. Any and all federal, state and local taxes are the sole responsibility of the winners. Participation in Contest and/or acceptance of prize constitutes each winner’s permission for Sponsor to use his/her name, address (city and state), likeness, photograph, picture, portrait, voice, biographical information, Submission and/or any statements made by each winner regarding the Contest or Sponsor for advertising and promotional purposes without notice or additional compensation, except where prohibited by law. By participating, entrants and winners agree to release and hold harmless Sponsor and its affiliates, and [their/its] advertising and promotion agencies and their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, representatives, agents, successors, assigns, employees, officers and directors (collectively, “Released Entities”), from any and all liability, for loss, harm, damage, injury, cost or expense whatsoever including without limitation, property damage, personal injury and/or death which may occur in connection with, preparation for, travel to, or participation in Contest, or possession, acceptance and/or use or misuse of prize or participation in any Contest-related activity and for any claims based on publicity rights, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright infringement, trademark infringement or any other intellectual property-related cause of action. Entrants who do not comply with these Official Rules, or attempt to interfere with this Contest in any way shall be disqualified. Sponsor is not responsible if Contest cannot take place or if any prize cannot be awarded due to travel cancellations, delays or interruptions due to acts of God, acts of war, natural disasters, epidemics, pandemics, weather or acts of terrorism.

  3. Additional Terms. Any attempted form of entry other than as set forth in Section 1 above is prohibited; no automatic, programmed; robotic or similar means of entry are permitted. Sponsor, its affiliates, partners and promotion and advertising agencies are not responsible for technical, hardware, software, telephone or other communications malfunctions, errors or failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, web site, Internet, or ISP availability, unauthorized human intervention, traffic congestion, incomplete or inaccurate capture of entry information (regardless of cause) or failed, incomplete, garbled, jumbled or delayed computer transmissions which may limit one’s ability to enter the Contest, including any injury or damage to participant’s or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participating in this Contest or downloading any materials in this Contest. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify, extend or suspend this Contest should (in its sole discretion) virus, bugs, non-authorized human intervention, fraud, epidemics, pandemics or other causes beyond its control corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness or proper conduct of the Contest. In such case, Sponsor will select the winners from all eligible entries received prior to and/or after (if appropriate) the action taken by Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds, in its sole discretion, to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest or web site. Sponsor may prohibit an entrant from participating in the Contest or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines that said entrant is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception, or other unfair playing practices (including the use of automated quick entry programs) or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrants or Sponsor representatives.
    CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, THE SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
    In the event of a dispute as to any Submission, the authorized account holder of the email address used to register will be deemed to be the entrant and must comply with these Official Rules. The "authorized account holder" is the natural person assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Each entrant may be required to show proof of being an authorized account holder.

  4. Limitation of Liability; Disclaimer of Warranties. IN NO EVENT WILL THE RELEASED ENTITIES BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SITE AND/OR FROM DOWNLOADING AND/OR PRINTING MATERIAL DOWNLOADED FROM ANY WEBSITES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONTEST. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THIS CONTEST AND ALL PRIZES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES SO SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. CHECK YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS OR LIMITATIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS.

  5. Disputes; Governing Law. The parties waive all rights to trial in any action or proceeding instituted in connection with these Official Rules, including, without limitation, the Contest. Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Official Rules and/or the Contest shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. Any such controversy or claim shall be arbitrated on an individual basis, and shall not be consolidated in any arbitration with any claim or controversy of any other party. The arbitration shall be conducted in the State of New York, City of New York.
    THESE OFFICIAL RULES AND THE INTERPRETATION OF ITS TERMS SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO ITS CONFLICTS OF LAWS RULES. For any matters which are not subject to arbitration as set forth in these Official Rules and/or in connection with the entering of any judgment on an arbitration award in connection with these Official Rules and/or the Contest, the parties irrevocably submit and consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the state and federal courts located in or closest to the County of New York in the State of New York. The parties agree not to raise the defense of forum non conveniens.

  6. Use of Data. Sponsor will be collecting personal data about entrants online, in accordance with its privacy policy. Please review the Sponsor’s privacy policy at https://better.com/about-us/privacy-policy. By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby agree to Sponsor’s collection and usage of their personal information and acknowledge that they have read and accepted Sponsor’s privacy policy.

  7. List of Winners. To obtain a list of winners, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope by May 30, 2023 to: Meg Gallagher, Better Holdco, Inc., 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, 57th Floor, New York, NY 10007.

  8. Sponsor. Better Holdco., Inc. 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, 57th Floor, New York, NY 10007.