weekly home poker tourny

So I wanted to get everybody's opinion on starting a weekly home tourny. The normal game most of us were playing at was in a warehouse that had tourny's just about every night for a year or so. This particular place took a rake (actually just part of the buy in money) to make a profit. It got shut down by the cops more for illegal poker machines than anything else. There hasen't been anything going on since then and I've been thinking of hosting a tourny in my garage. My question: Am I out of line to expect people to pay $20 (prize pool) + $10 (the house) to play in my weekly event?? Most of these people aren't close friends, just people I've played poker with. The old tourny had high participation in the 60's all the way down to 9 people sometimes. I would limit my tourny to 27 as that is all the room I have in the garage. I not going to allow alcohol and might provide light food. My neighborhood is pretty wide open so I don't see parking bothering any neighbors (I live on 2 acres). With a wife and 3 year old I want to keep it out of the actual house. IMHO I think it's fair to ask for $10 just to set up a tourny with a potential prize pool of $700 (rebuys/add ons)especially when there isn't anything else in the area. We were paying basically a rake before, I can't imagine anybody complaining now. Any ideas/comments??

[Benoit]

50% rake? No way, especially not if it's a private tournament. No matter how good I am, I can't beat a 50% rake. A bad rake is as bad and worse as a bad structure. At least a bad structure still keeps most of the money on the table.

If you're concerned about getting paid back for all your food and effort, then have each person chip in like $5 for food and what not. If you are dead set on making it $10 a person, then raise the buy in to at least $40-$50.

But in reality, even if I paid a 20% rake, I would expect dedicated dealers and such to get enough hands per level in. Make it just enough to cover costs is how I feel about it, then I don't care if it's a casual (each player has to deal) environment.

[smoore]

33% rake is insane, but if you can get it...

I would play if it were $50+10, security provided plus food/drink and donk-a-plenty.

edit, oh yeah... 50% vig! wow.

WTF do you need $270 (27 players * $10 rake) for to run the tourney? If you need start-ups costs covered (e.g., tables and chips), it may be OK to ask for some initial contribution. But not every week. And $270 every week is just insane. No way I would pay that because the only person making regular money in the tourney is the host. Buying enough pizza for 27 costs less than $100 (and you're not even doing that!). How can you justify $270?

Plus, taking a rake may be illegal where you live.

Home games shouldn't be charging a rake period. But to charge a rake that is 50% of the buyin is insane. I hate to say it but it doesn't sound like you understand how things work.

[smoore]

And he won't even *allow* booze... how the hell am I supposed to play cards like that?

[tonypaladino]

50% rake in any tourny is insane
Rake in any home game is in poor taste, and is probably illegal where you live if the warehouse game got shut down.

First, of course taking a rake is illegal in my area!! The very game itself is illegal in my area!! But that dosen't stop anybody from playing.
Second, of course I'm doing it to make a profit!! As I said in my first post, none of these people are close friends. When I have a tourny for friends, I NEVER charge anything!!
Third, it dosen't cost PartyPoker $1K to hold a MTT every night of the friggin' week, but they sure charge it!! They've decided that their market of players can bear the cost of $1 for a chance at alot more. Now, if i could fit 250 people in my garage, I'd only charge $1 too.

Why not just hold everyone up at gun point as they enter the garage. you could make a profit that way without all the fuss of a poker tournament.

[Guernica4000]

Who is going to pay that? Just think if you host a regular tourney 3 nights a week with 27 players you would rake $42,000+ a year.