I don't usually bother to sign up for sweepstakes, but Denver just had its big home show. In conjunction with that one of the radio stations did a "Spring Spruce Up" contest where local vendors donated certificates forth $2,000-$3000 each for a total value of $22,000. Since I happened to have just bought a fixer upper last fall I decided to sign up. I won! I didn't claim one certificate for roofing since my roof is pretty new and I have to pay taxes on the winnings, but everything else is exactly what I need for fixing up the house.
I was figuring on fixing up DIY over the next few years, but this makes it so we can do most all of the renovations this year!