Real estate listings for luxury castles for sale in France
Buying a castle in France is a dream !
Many imagine the sweetness of life in a French castle.
The French expression "Chateau Life" is synonymous with a pleasant, idle and opulent life, the French art of living, the reminder of the times of royalty and nobility of France, of prestige and of France's influence in the world where castles were the homes of the rich.
Buying a castle is a bit like buying a piece of French history , as the castles in France are full of a historical past, places or symbols where significant events in the history of France took root, famous people who lived in these places, as many poets, writers, artists and well-known personalities who stayed there.
The origin of the castle dates back to the Middle Ages.
Castles were originally designed to control a territory, borders, they were military constructions.
Often built on mounds of earth, the first castles were built of wood then over time stone was the material used for the construction of fortified castles.
The kings of France and the nobles subsequently built castles for pleasure and comfort.
In fact castles continued to be built with fortifications until the 15th century, then with the end of the Hundred Years' War, castles gradually became the residences of lords and kings.
Many castles were built in the Loire Valley and the Loire Valley is home to some of the most beautiful castles in France.
France has a park of around 40,000 castles, a certain number of which are for sale every year.
Impressive buildings, castles inspire dreams from a very young age, young boys who imagine themselves knights and young girls princesses, and the craze for castles has never waned.
Type “Château en France” into Google and millions of pages are indexed by the famous search engine.
France attracts many tourists who come to visit the most beautiful castles: naturally the Château de Versailles, probably the most beautiful castle in the world, closely followed by the Château de Chambord, the Château de Vaux-le Vicomte, the Château de Fontainebleau, the Château de Chantilly, and all the other wonderful castles of France.
The craze for castles is well anchored and alive in France but also all over the world as these constructions from ancient times are the stuff of dreams!
With its impressive castle park in France, it is not surprising that many non-residents, the wealthy clientele of international buyers, are interested in purchasing a castle in France.
Buying a castle is not within everyone's reach because the maintenance costs, the work, in short the overall investment can represent a fortune and the largest castles for sale are more easily sold at wealthy international clients.
Considering the purchase of a castle requires careful consideration.
This castle market is a niche market, with some real estate agencies specializing in this niche in castle sales valuation because the purchase of a castle, or conversely its sale, requires very specific attention.
Purists who love old stones and noble architecture will rather head towards 18th century castles, some of which can still be found which have remained in their original state and have not undergone interior transformations which could distort the architectural authenticity of the places and period decoration.
The castles which have managed to keep their soul of yesteryear, their original characteristics with their old parquet floors, their old moldings, their stained glass windows, everything that makes the charm and authenticity of the building, will be favored by true purists, crazy castle lovers.
Becoming the owner of a castle will require having time to devote to it with some financial means to ensure proper routine maintenance, in addition to the conservation and improvement work that must be undertaken to make it a place to live with modern comfort.
Unique, timeless places with undeniable charm, many castles are suitable places for organizing receptions, seminars, weddings, dream vacations, open-air concerts or artistic events.
Many castle owners make their property an exceptional place for receptions and professional or family events, in a commercial approach because the income thus makes it possible to meet all or part of the maintenance and maintenance costs. conservation of the building.
There are aids and subsidies for castle owners and advantageous taxation, particularly for those of castles classified as historic monuments.
Before embarking on the acquisition of a castle, you will need to study the operating and maintenance costs precisely: small castles can quickly require a budget of €10,000 to €15,000 per year; As for medium and large castles, annual charges can quickly reach €100,000 and exceed them.
Some fuel tanks in castles can quickly have storage capacities of 10,000 or 20,000 liters so when it comes to filling at least one or two tanks for the winter season, it is preferable to have a well-stocked bank account!
Boilers must also be regularly serviced and maintained.
The parks and gardens of castles, often covering several hectares, require staff for maintenance.
The roofs and frames are most often the largest expenditure items and during the purchase phase of a castle, an audit of the condition of the roof and the frame is often essential.
But the good news if you dream of buying a castle in France is that there are many on the market, in all regions of France and the first prices for small castles to renovate can start from of €350,000/400,000 which also leaves the dream within the reach of a large number of buyers.
To start having a truly interesting castle, with volume, which it is possible to enhance with event activities, you must rather count on a budget of between €600,000 and €800,000 which allows you to consider the purchase of a more opulent castle.
Above that the prices have no limits!
Castle life is a dream, but so that the dream does not turn into a nightmare, it is preferable to carefully study your acquisition project before embarking on the adventure and go through a prestigious real estate agency specializing in the sale of castles. who will be able to advise you and offer you a castle adapted to your needs and in line with your budget so that your dream of a castle becomes reality.
