A couple from Aylmer has found a clever way to sell their house for $100, but it won't cost them a penny.

Calvin Brydges and his wife Diana say they had to get creative, after trying to sell their home outside of London the 'old fashioned' way with no success. They're holding an essay contest where you can win their home for $100, but there is a bit of a catch.

To enter, an essay on 'how winning this house will benefit you', along with the money, to Calvin and Diana Brydges: PO Box 93, Aylmer ON, N5H 2R8

The contest runs until August 31st. Spelling and grammar don't count. If the couple manages to get 3,000 entries, they'll pick their favourite, and that person will have essentially 'won' the house for $100. Everyone else is out of luck. The couple will then use the $300,000 to relocate to Barrie.

If they don't get enough entries, everyone gets their money back.

Calvin tells AM980 he's overwhelmed with the response so far. "It's been excellent. We've received over 150 entries so far. They're still coming in, and they're coming in from all over. We're blown away by it actually, it's been pretty amazing," he said. 

A third party actually receives the letters first, and Calvin said, "they remove all identifying characteristics from the essay as to the author, they are logged on a separate log sheet, and the essays are given corresponding numbers. My wife and I just read the essays solely with a number on it, totally blind as to who the author was."

They got the idea from watching the 1996 movie "Spitfire Grill", where a woman held a similar contest to give away her diner. "My wife and I both looked at each other at the same time and went, 'Why can't we do this for our house?' So began about 9 months of research, digging into laws and real estate law, civil law, criminal law. This is perfectly legal to do and here we are today doing the contest," he said.

The Brydges own "This and That Thrift Store" in Aylmer and their kids will continue to run that location when they relocate to Barrie. They plan to open a second thrift store there.

The contest winner will walk away with a 2400 square foot, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom home with a finished basement and outdoor pool. For more information, and to see photos of the home, click here.