Chip and Joanna Gaines' latest home project is quite the fixer-upper. The Texas couple made famous by HGTV's Fixer Upper home improvement show closed Friday on the historic but rundown Cottonland Castle in Waco, the AP reports. A spokesman for the Gaines' business, Magnolia, says the couple has long admired the castle and previously made attempts to purchase it. Spokesman John Marsicano says the couple has not yet determined specific plans for the property but that they plan to complete the castle's restoration. Construction on the 6,700-square-foot stone castle began in 1890 and was completed in 1913. It has been vacant for about 20 years despite efforts to renovate it; the Gaineses bought it from an Oxford scholar.
The Waco Tribune-Herald reports that the castle was listed at $425,000, though the sale price has not been disclosed. The paper also notes Chip Gaines could be seen atop the roof of the castle Friday afternoon, and a film crew was also photographed around the castle. An estimate done for the previous owner put the cost of renovations the castle will need at $600,000 to $1 million; the Tribune-Herald notes that the building has water damage, rotting woodwork, weather wear on the exterior, damaged stonework, outdated electrical and plumbing systems, and no moisture or humidity controls. There's also a nearly empty pool surrounded by orange plastic netting and a fence in disrepair, plus a yard in need of landscaping. (More Fixer Upper stories.)
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