Julia Leach dreamed of owning a chateau as a girl. She convinced her parents to buy a castle blindly – but the costs devoured the dream.
Real estate prices in San Diego are high, but in France historic buildings are very cheap. So Julia Leach, 33, and Caroline Ibarra, 37, sold their home and invested 2.3 million euros in the Château de Puy Vidal in Charente.
The couple packed their bags and moved into the 750-year-old building with Julia’s parents and sister to convert it into a dream castle. Their adventure began like a typical Instagram renovation story. All couples encounter difficulties. But Leach and Ibarra had not chosen a farm or an old inn, but a huge property. And their problems grew immeasurably with the dimensions.
Huge chateau, huge problems
The house is 1300 square meters, plus a park and outbuildings. Everything needs to be maintained and renovated. These costs completely eat up the income from renting it out as an exclusive retreat. They estimated the renovation to cost 1 million US dollars, the equivalent of just under 900,000 euros. They have now reached 1.3 million euros. And there is no end in sight. The couple estimates that they will have to spend the same amount again.
“It’s going to be completely unaffordable,” Leach told the Wall Street Journal. Apparently they were a bit naive about the matter and neglected to hire an appraiser before the purchase to list the necessary work.
It was only after they had bought it that they realised that the 750-year-old castle was a listed building and that a lot of the work had to be carried out in a historically correct manner, which made each individual construction project much more expensive. It was only when they arrived that they realised the full extent of the problems. Very naively, they expected that the water and electrical installations of an old castle would have to be replaced. Even though the chateau was in good condition and by no means a ruin.
Blind purchase of the property
The way the house was bought anticipated the coming disaster. Leach had dreamed of a castle since she was a little girl. During the pandemic, the couple moved from New York to Leach’s parents in California. That’s where the dream of a castle in France was born. In fact, the parents financed the castle with the sale of their house. Before buying it, they saved up the cost of flying to France. The castle was bought blind. They hardly spoke any French either. Then they realized that not everyone in rural France can speak English.
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That’s probably the main difference to other “castle rescuers” who don’t have vast resources. Dan Preston, with the successful YouTube channel “Escape to rural France”, is renovating a chateau himself. But he had already worked in France and had excellent contacts in the region before he bought a burnt-out building. Preston and his friends can also do more than just decorate for Instagram. They are craftsmen and real workhorses. That keeps costs low. In his case, one can assume that the income from social media finances the construction.
Hopeful breakthrough
Ibarra and Leach initially marketed their castle as a bed and breakfast, but the castle and guests were too much work. And too intense. The guests didn’t just want to experience the castle, but above all the hosts they followed on Instagram. A yoga workshop was well received, but remained a loss-making business. And losses are not just a financial problem. To get a permanent visa, the two must each prove an income of over 40,000 euros. The parents benefit from a pensioner visa.
“Life is always really hard… And the romanticized, beautiful things you see on an Instagram feed – it’s always so much work to make them happen,” moans Leach. But in October they are offering a five-day “fantasy photoshoot retreat” twice. Fortunately, thanks to their presence on YouTube and Instagram, there is never a lack of interest – they are completely sold out.
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Source: Stern
