These days many people are looking for a cheap French château to renovate. Who hasn’t watched the charming Dick and Angel Strawbridge on “Escape to the Château” or the many intrepid châtelains on “Château DIY” on Channel 4?
The prices are good, the buildings are amazing, and what an adventure. However, if you want to purchase a French château, you should be prepared that it can be a cumbersome process and we would recommend that you get a good grasp of the costs involved before taking the plunge. It is easy to get blinded by the low prices although the past couple of years the prices have been heading north as well. However, the real and hidden costs are the upkeep and taxes of having a château. Commodity prices are much higher in France than in the UK, and thus building materials, furniture and everything else is pricey. Hence, buying an old French château or an abandoned château will be more costly to maintain than buying a fully renovated château. In addition, real estate taxes are much higher in France than in the UK, including relatively high property taxes (taxe fonciere) and habitation taxes (taxe d’habitation) which fall due annually and must be included in your budget.
That said, in our not-so-objective opinion, nowhere else on the planet do you find such magical fairytale châteaux.
You can read more about our château, the ancient Château de Massanes, here and we would be delighted if you would like to be a Lord or Lady of Massanes to support us.
As for browing French real estate for yourself, we recommend the following sites:
General search sites:
Important agents:
Auction sales:
