Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, have paid significantly more – almost double – for their historic Irish castle than initial market estimates suggested, spending over €51 million (approximately $56 million) on the central residence alone, a report by The Irish Times said, citing official property records. The transaction for Strancally Castle in County Waterford finalised at €51,171,155, according to data published by Ireland’s official Property Price Register. The recorded figure is roughly double the price real estate insiders projected when news of the deal first emerged, with early estimates placing the sale between €20 million and €30 million.
According to the historical book The Houses of Ireland by Brian De Breffny and Rosemary Ffolliott, the three-storey estate encompasses 16,000 square feet, laid out on such an expansive floor plan that it required “a brisk walk of 4 and half minutes to reach the dining room from the kitchen. Meta, parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has operated its European headquarters out of Ireland since 2009, where it currently employs roughly 1,500 people. Moreover, the property gives the Meta founder a direct base near his company’s key international operations.