Become a knight without fear and reproach
“As a rule, castle buyers are mature men, wealthy, with an established worldview. They already have penthouses and villas on the seashore. But they want something real,” Natalya Makovik, director of the historical real estate agency MAK Consulting, tells Gazeta.Ru. “But the golden youth are indifferent to antiquity.”
The buyer can also be a foreigner. Historical real estate (namely castles, ancient mansions and villas fall into this category) can be purchased both as an individual and as a company registered in a specific country.
What to do with such real estate after purchase is up to the owner. If desired and without legal restrictions, one can conduct tours for tourists, organize events, turn the castle into a hotel, restore and resell – in a word, make money. Or simply live and feel like a count, baron, knight without fear and reproach.
Owners of historical properties are not obliged to open their castles and famous mansions to tourists, locals and other prying eyes. In Europe, private property is respected.
Buy a castle for 1 euro or 10 million euros
“A lot of real estate with the status of architectural monuments or cultural heritage is located in Italy, France, Austria, in some regions of Switzerland and Germany. Traditionally popular are castles and estates that previously belonged to royal families, as well as properties with a history where a famous film was shot or a legendary event took place,” says Anna Mironova, head of projects at the international real estate department of Knight Frank.
At the same time, the most expensive castles are in Britain and Switzerland. Here, according to Natalya Makovik, an estate will cost about 8-10 million euros. In France, the average price of castles is 3 million euros. You can, of course, buy for 1 million, but in that case repairs will be needed.
The lowest prices are in the Czech Republic. “This is explained simply: local castles are in poor condition,” clarifies Natalya Makovik. “There are properties for 15 thousand euros. After renovation, Czech castles cost 5-6 million euros. We even have a castle in our offer that costs 1 euro, and the main condition of purchase is to remove the castle from the site.”
When starting a cheap deal to purchase a castle in a deplorable condition, do not forget: a mandatory condition in such cases is having money for reconstruction, the cost of which in reality can exceed the cost of the property by hundreds of thousands of times.
Acquire the palace of your dreams wisely
If you have weighed all the pros and cons and realized that you cannot live without a former royal residence, think about how to buy your dream home wisely, without wasting extra money and nerve cells. “I recommend using the services of agencies that specialize in historical real estate. They are familiar with the specifics of such properties, unlike ordinary realtors,” advises Natalya Makovik.
Agencies, as a rule, sell historical properties with a clearly fixed price. The situation is different at auctions, where castles are also put up. Here a lot depends on you and your competitors. Before buying, according to the expert, it is necessary:
1. To clearly determine what the castle is for: for business, living or reconstruction for resale;
2. To formulate personal requirements regarding the desired comfort;
3. Not to forget that castles are not apartments. There are not so many castles, and each is unique. Therefore, a strict requirement “Need a castle of 530 sq m with ten bedrooms, a lake and a helipad, on a mountain, 15 km from Paris” is impossible;
4. To accept that this is an ancient object with history, so the owner is simply obliged to treat such real estate responsibly and with respect.
Be vigilant when becoming a baron
When purchasing historical properties, you can take advantage of preferential programs that exist in different countries. The most attractive in this regard is the Czech Republic. There are about 20 subsidy programs here, through which you can reconstruct castles and fortresses, open museums, hotels, entertainment centers, sanatoriums in them.
“The Czech state is favorable to foreigners who restore local monuments and positively considers applications for temporary residence, permanent residence, citizenship,” says Natalya Makovik.
When buying a historical property, one should not forget about paying taxes. They are different in each country. So, in the Czech Republic, which is now very popular among our compatriots, when making a transaction, you need to pay a real estate purchase tax of 4% of the value. The annual property tax here is low: for example, for a castle with a park of 8 hectares, the owner pays 400 euros per year.
Despite the obvious advantages of making such transactions, there are also non-obvious disadvantages. “The risks when buying historical real estate in European countries are associated with the peculiarities of legislation protecting historical and cultural heritage. In most objects protected by the law on cultural values, it will be impossible to carry out renovation work,” comments Anna Mironova.
In some countries, according to the expert, legislation prohibits changing anything in the appearance of the object, for example the color of the walls or even the shade.
Also, you will not be able to add a terrace (or any other additional room) or remove an unnecessary closet. “We had a property on Lake Maggiore – a beautiful house with a huge garden, stunning views and luxurious interior decoration. But it was impossible to sell this house, because its technical characteristics, so to speak, remained in the last century,” clarifies Anna Mironova. “At the same time, it was prohibited to install the necessary electricity and heating equipment in the house.”
Invite guests and heat your estates
The smallest castle occupies a large area – at least 600 square meters, while the area of an ancient building can reach 10,000 square meters. Heating such property is not cheap, although modern technologies allow insulating historical monuments and using alternative energy sources.
“We strictly instruct all our clients: in winter, the temperature in the castle must be maintained at least +8 degrees. And there must always be people present, walking, breathing, opening windows – castles fall apart when left alone,” explains Natalya Makovik.
According to her, heating a castle in winter at 8 degrees will cost about 3,000 euros per month – if using electricity. And if using a heat pump, fireplaces, solar panels, gas, it will cost up to 1,000 euros per month.
Light Vivien Leigh's fireplace or work in Ray Bradbury's study
In today's global world, you can buy almost anything if you wish, not only castles but also luxurious homes of celebrities from various eras.
For example, in April 2014, the Tickerage Mill estate, where actress Vivien Leigh lived, was put up for sale for 3.5 million pounds sterling (about $6 million). The estate, whose main building was built in the 17th century, is located in southern England, in East Sussex.
In this house, Vivien Leigh entertained famous guests, including Princess Margaret and Winston Churchill. The main reminder of the actress is the marble fireplace in the master bedroom: Vivien Leigh specially brought it from Venice. Besides the fireplace, the 384 sq m mansion has five bedrooms, a living room with a view of the pond, a dressing room, several bathrooms, a wine cellar, and a rooftop terrace.
In May of the same year, one of the most famous castles in the world was put up for sale – Bran Castle in Romania, also known as Dracula's Castle. The first mention of a fortress on this site dates back to 1211. The building became famous thanks to Bram Stoker's book about the vampire Count Dracula.
The castle is visited by about 500,000 tourists annually, most of whom are foreigners. Among them are celebrities such as Kevin Costner, Nicolas Cage, Cuba Gooding Jr., and others. Another significant source of income for the owners is revenue from film shoots, romantic dinners, and weddings held at the castle. According to the Romanian publication Studentie, last year Bran Castle brought its owners from the Habsburg royal dynasty (who actually own the castle) 1.2 million euros in net profit out of 2 million euros in total revenue. The castle ranks second in Forbes' rating of the most expensive real estate and is valued at $140 million.
And in California, the famous yellow house of Ray Bradbury, built in 1937, was recently put up for sale. Its price is $1.5 million. The writer lived in the house for more than 50 years. The house has an area of about 232 sq m, with three bedrooms, a large living room, a classic fireplace, and a spacious basement where the famous writer liked to work.