“We are already 600,000 euros in renovations”: owner of the Gers castle of Avensac, an American couple cannot pay for all the work

A dream worth several hundred thousand euros. The year is 2015. Mark Goff and Philipp Engel, two Americans living on the west coast of the United States, are working from home. They are finishing renovations on their house, which is more than 150 years old. As they write the last lines of a blog detailing this long-term work, an ad appears. “It was about a couple who had bought a ruined castle south of Toulouse,” says Mark. “The building was magnificent, the history fascinating. I then turned my screen to Philipp and said to him: what if We were moving to France and buying a castle?”

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There, the epic begins. The couple crossed the border for the first time in 2015, solely to discover the region and its valleys. In 2016, they came back with ideas in their heads. “But we had to finish renovating our house in California and then sell it, which took us four years.” On April 1, 2020, Philipp and Mark are planning their last trip to France. “But in March, the pandemic hit,” says Philipp with regret. “Our visas were canceled, we had to wait.”

It was only at the end of 2020, in December, that the duo finally crossed the border. After a few adventures, they found their rare gem: the Château d'Avensac. For Philipp, this is obvious. “I had to convince Mark, and I succeeded,” laughs the squire. It is therefore for the tidy sum of 1.2 million dollars, or 1,143,000 euros, that they acquired this 48-room building.

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An expensive surprise

But with rooms built in the 1820s and an entrance arch erected in 1320, the Château d'Avensac was not in a condition to accommodate a home. Mark and Phillip have already spent more than 600,000 euros to redo the electricity and plumbing, repair the roof, purchasing all fittings and tiling for 14 new bathrooms, recreating a large period kitchen, utility room and two additional kitchen spaces. Preparation work for the new heating system continues and the foundations are reinforced.

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“We budgeted $1 million for renovations, but it won't be enough,” laments Mark. It was a million for the entire property. “We've accomplished a lot in the main house, and we're very excited about the restorations, but our budget amount won't include outbuildings, for example.” Gathered in the living room, which is one of the restored rooms, they do the accounts. “It was the cost of heating that surprised us the most, we had not anticipated such a high figure in our budget.”

A big part of the budget surprise was that Mark had to do a lot of the work himself. “After purchasing the castle he suffered from a serious health issue which currently prevents him from walking, this is a temporary condition, and with daily physical therapy he hopes to be back to work on the house over the next year as a result, we've had to hire more help than we anticipated, and so we're constantly thinking of ways to raise more money for the restoration.”

Work continuing

Taking a more holistic view of the situation, Mark and Philipp know they won't be able to complete the project as quickly as they had planned due to budget constraints.

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“For example, there is a lot of work to be done on the exterior of the house,” explains Mark. “We would like to re-coat the facade. And we need to restore the shutters. But this work will take time because the building is a historic monument. We therefore need the agreement of Bâtiments de France.” Only 31 architects are accredited in France to carry out these renovation projects.

Once the work is completed, Mark and Phillip would like to develop a program for visitors, to introduce them to the “French art of living”, including its cuisine, wine and environment.