Peso Prize Would’ve Cost Realtor Plenty

Northridge realtor Todd C. Olson almost had a Cinco de Mayo surprise.

His brokerage company of the same name recently distributed entry forms for a drawing in celebration of the May 5 Mexican holiday. The giveaways included a cruise for two to Mexico and dinner for two at a local Mexican restaurant.

But another prize Olson offered seemed like a lottery jackpot: a million pesos to the winning entry.

A year ago, that many pesos would have been worth a few hundred dollars. But at the start of 1993, the Mexican government revalued the peso to symbolize the nation’s reduced inflation and return to a solid currency. What was once 1,000 pesos suddenly became one peso. And at current exchange rates, Olson’s prize would have been more than $300,000.

In a telephone interview, Olson said the mistake occurred quite innocently. His firm has held the annual drawing for the past eight years, and a few months ago when his staff was coordinating the event it was given last year’s exchange rate by a bank it consulted, he said.

About 150 entry forms were turned in to the firm before someone noticed the goof and called Olson. He said he sent out letters to everyone who had entered, explaining that the peso prize was really only worth $324. “It was a stupid, embarrassing error,” Olson said.

He said he has received no complaints, and the number of entries was no greater than in years past. The winner of the pesos has not yet been reached, he said.

Olson plans to do another contest next year--but he said he’ll probably skip the pesos.