A COUNTY Durham couple are raffling off their three-storey home for just £1 a ticket - and they are throwing in a BMW too.

Richard and India Taylor, who are parents to Lucas, four, and eight-month-old Eli, are hoping to fulfil their "dream move" to Australia.

They are using an online raffle site to try and sell their Victorian home and BMW X3 M Sport to raise enough funds. 

The couple had placed their Bishop Auckland home on the market in January but efforts to sell were hampered following the coronavirus outbreak.

Speaking to The Northern Echo, Mr Taylor described how some had described the idea as "crazy," but said the couple were determined to make it work.

The Northern Echo: Richard Taylor with India Taylor with children, Lucas and Eli Richard Taylor with India Taylor with children, Lucas and Eli

The couple have since spent thousands of pounds refurbishing their three-bedroom, three-storey home in a bid to boost their chances.

Mr Taylor said: "We put the house up for sale in January, we got lots of interest and thought we'll be able to sell it quickly then coronavirus happened."

The couple had been planning the 9,400 mile move after Mr Taylor was offered a job in Perth, Australia.

Mr and Mrs Taylor had already forked out more than £15,000 in the process of obtaining Australian Visas before the outbreak began.

The Northern Echo: Pictures supplied by RICHARD TAYLORPictures supplied by RICHARD TAYLOR

He said: "We have paid quite a bit of money to sell the house and paid for all the Visas - luckily my new employer is willing to wait."

The raffle, which is being hosted on Raffall.com, is hoping to attract a total of 300,000 entrants at a cost of £1 each.

It is due to end in November by which time Mr Taylor hopes will have raised enough money to facilitate the dream move.

He said: "Some family and friends have said they thought we were crazy.

The Northern Echo: Pictures supplied by RICHARD TAYLORPictures supplied by RICHARD TAYLOR

"When we first told them of the idea they were sceptical, they said do you think it will work, will we be able to sell 300,000 tickets."

According to Raffall, if a prize is not handed over then the winner is entitled to 75 percent of the ticket sales.

But for Mr Taylor, they have no reason to believe it will come to that.

He said: "We've seen it can be done and we are very committed to this - it is going to be my full time job almost to sell as many as we can.

"We will do it," he added.

The home comes complete with a reception hall, lounge, kitchen, dining room, study, bathroom, three bedrooms and an en-suite. 

Outside, the home features at Victorian style courtyard with outside storage and seating area.