Some winners of items like luxury cars have been known to sell the vehicle, pay the taxes and pocket the rest. Winners of homes can probably get loans to cover a good part of the taxes and still wind up paying far less than they would if they bought a similar home. For trips, this can get tricky. Be sure you want the trip, can afford the taxes and that it is practical for your lifestyle. A single person, for example, probably wouldn t want to win a trip designed for a family of four, as many prize trips are.
Smaller prizes have the advantage of little or no tax liability.
Your chance of winning is often far greater, both because fewer people conscientiously enter these contests and because far more of these prizes are offered. Another issue to be aware of is privacy. Some companies run sweepstakes solely to gain consumers good will. They ask for only enough personal information so that they can contact you if you win. These companies assure entrants that they won t be targeted for solicitation and that entrants contact information will not be sold to other companies.