Czech Castles Selling Cheaper than Ever

With prices for these historic monuments dipping as low as €12,000, now is the time to make your fairy tale a reality

Elizabeth Zahradnicek-Haas

Written by Elizabeth Zahradnicek-Haas Published on 08.02.2016 13:05:30 (updated on 08.02.2016) Reading time: 1 minute

Housing Culture

The Czech Republic is one of the most castle-dense regions in Europe with some 2,000-plus palaces and chateaux adorning the landscape around Prague and beyond. If the idea of owning a Renaissance-style mansion seems like pure fantasy, you could be wrong: Bloomberg is reporting that a Czech castle is going for less than a Manhattan studio apartment these days. 

Their recent article interviewed the owner of VIP Castles, a Prague-based real estate agency that lists around 400 properties from modest manors to grand palaces. The company sells three properties a month on average at prices that range from a spendy €4 million to a bargain bin €12,000.

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Castles in the Czech Republic are said to be a steal compared with those in Western countries where similar properties can cost 5 to 10 times more. Cheap labor makes for affordable renovations and with no inheritance tax the country gives owners who restore historic buildings tax incentives.

Naysayers still make the argument that buying a castle here isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Many of the properties are in complete ruins while for some would-be castellans, living in a rural Czech village isn’t exactly a fairy tale.

So just who is buying castles these days? VIP Sales says their clients tend to be wealthy Russians and Ukrainians who often flip properties into hotels, breweries, or spas.

Ready to trade your walk-up flat for something with moat? Fixer-uppers listed with VIP Castles include Kolovratsky Castle, a 16th-century historical monument north of Pilsen selling for €19,000, or a 10-room chateau in Dolní Jadruž, south of Karlovy Vary, priced at €48,000.

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