Future Home for Prince Harry

[Osipi]

Another point to make about the renovations that have been already done for the Cambridge's residences is that it wasn't solely done just for William and Kate. Its also insurance that the properties will be up to date and there for in the future. With KP, the needed renovation of the building itself was paid for by the Sovereign grant but the interior redecorating were paid for by Will and Kate themselves (with possible help from Charles).

I think its also important to state that places like Buckingham Palace, Windsor castle and Kensington Palace and such where royals have residences are not their own nor are they the property of the royal family themselves and therefore cannot be sold. The monarch does hold Balmoral and Sandringham as her own personal property but it is also slated to be passed from monarch to monarch. As a rule, the royal family owns very little property. Anne does own Gatcombe Park and Charles has properties in Romania but that is about it.

Besides inheriting money from his mother, Harry also has a holding in the trust fund that was set up by the Queen Mother for her great grandchildren estimated at 19 million at the time. That has to be a substantial chunk to add to a bank account.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/apr/03/queenmother.monarchy2

 

[MichelleQ2]

it wouldnt surprise me if Harry were gifted some land in Africa upon his wedding; a gift from friends (not family) - something like Princess Margaret and Mustique.

 

[cepe]

Just a reminder that money only works for you if you don't spend it.

His capital is all Harry has. He isn't earning a salary/regular income, although he does have an army pension.

spend the interest; don't spend the capital.

Large houses require large amounts of maintenance and staff. And he is liable for tax, including inheritance tax.

Many royals in his position have struggled, hence moving into KP and continuing royal duties.

Although his grandmother (lesser degree) and his father (the most) will leave him £££ but that is some way off.

 

[Lady Nimue]

The tradition set by the Queen is ONE home for the younger siblings usually a large country home and an apartment in London although Margaret was the opposite.

I suspect Harry will be the same - ONE large home - probably an apartment in KP and then access to a much smaller apartment when he wants it at Sandringham and Balmoral. He certainly won't be getting two large homes unless he is going to pay the upkeep of at least one of them himself. The cost in terms of taxpayer funded security has to be also taken into account as any home of his will need 24/7 security - even if said second home was overseas, which should rule out that option.

That's what I think, too. Harry does not seem to be a country sort.

But I do think a home elsewhere might be a requirement for Harry's new wife. If that wife is Meghan, it many be she keeps her Toronto home. One possibility.

 

[Iluvbertie]

I am sorry but what precedent

So younger children must buy their own homes????

I do wonder how Anne bought Gatcombe. I was under the impression she was gifted it. She is a younger child.

I do wonder about Sunninghill. Quite a large house for Andrew to buy on naval salary. But he is a younger son and as you point out, younger children have to buy their own homes. I was under the mistaken impression that it was gifted to them as well. \

Oh well my memory must be pretty shotty. I thought there was quite a precedent for younger kids to be given homes. And previous generations.


FYI Andrew's renovations are part of the rent he was meant to pay on royal lodge. It covers the cost for the next 25 years (260,000 a year). If he chooses to break the lease in the next 25 years, the crown estates would be required to compensate him the remaining money (he basically paid 25 years rent in advance). His renovations were in part funded by the sale of his home which had been a gift from his mother.

Edward is the only child who was not gifted ownership of a house. I guess good thing Harry isn't a fourth son.

There is also no precedence set for grandkids which Harry is right now. Nor does Charles have to follow what his mother did.

I didn't say they had to 'buy' the house but the 'refurbishment' of said house.

Andrew was able to buy the lease of Royal Lodge before he sold Sunninghill so obviously had another source of income besides his naval salary - a trust fund set up by his mother would be the obvious source of that income. He also paid for the refurbishment of Royal Lodge. He didn't have to 'buy' it but he did have to pay for the refurbishment himself - which offset some of the cost of the lease as it is a Crown Estate property which will revert to the Estate at the end of the lease and so won't pass down after the end of the lease - same with Baghshot which is on a shorter lease.

The Queen did buy Gatcombe so Anne's descendants will have somewhere to live forever - assuming they can eventually pay the death duties.

It was the refurbishing of a home that was the precedent set - Andrew had to pay for that himself so presumably if Harry was to get a country estate then he too would have to pay for the refurbishment and then ongoing maintenance of said home.

 

[Pranter]

Are we suggesting that Harry would actually be made to pay for the work himself

If the queen saw fit or Charles to gift him a home on one of her properties, it would only be cost of refurbishing. Considering Amner was done for William, I highly doubt that Harry would be expected to foot the cost of his own home. The William will be king argument holds no water here. William has even less need of Amner, as he will be king and have royal estates one day. Harry will only have what is given to him.


Added security and such costs really don't apply to a home on of the estates. We're not talking buying his own estate off in the country which needs around clock protection. The estates already have it.

No...I think I mentioned earlier that his father/brother would take care of things.


LaRae

 

[sndral]

I always assumed Andrew had to pay for the Royal lodge refurb. because he'd already been given Sunninghill and decided he didn't want it and his parents weren't willing to basically gift him a second home by paying for the Royal lodge refurb. too.
Edward seems to have been given the least. Although for all we know the Queen could have opted to set up trusts for his children rather than gifting him property or some such.
Harry does have funds from his mother's estate in addition to the funds from his great grandmother's trust, so he could buy a country estate. Or he might be gifted a country manor/estate by Charles as the Queen did for Anne and Andrew.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

I always assumed Andrew had to pay for the Royal lodge refurb. because he'd already been given Sunninghill and decided he didn't want it and his parents weren't willing to basically gift him a second home by paying for the Royal lodge refurb. too.
Edward seems to have been given the least. Although for all we know the Queen could have opted to set up trusts for his children rather than gifting him property or some such.
Harry does have funds from his mother's estate in addition to the funds from his great grandmother's trust, so he could buy a country estate. Or he might be gifted a country manor/estate by Charles as the Queen did for Anne and Andrew.

And as pointed out earlier, if Harry spends capital on property, that lessens his future income. A country estate is costly-upkeep and taxes. Anne's place is a working horse farm with events to offset costs.

 

[Iluvbertie]

I always assumed Andrew had to pay for the Royal lodge refurb. because he'd already been given Sunninghill and decided he didn't want it and his parents weren't willing to basically gift him a second home by paying for the Royal lodge refurb. too.
Edward seems to have been given the least. Although for all we know the Queen could have opted to set up trusts for his children rather than gifting him property or some such.
Harry does have funds from his mother's estate in addition to the funds from his great grandmother's trust, so he could buy a country estate. Or he might be gifted a country manor/estate by Charles as the Queen did for Anne and Andrew.

He had to pay for the refurbishment himself to reduce the cost of the lease. If he had had Royal Palaces pay for the refurbishment then the cost of the lease would have been higher.

 

[Lady Nimue]

A bit of a side issue, and I know it's been explained once before, but could someone quickly explain why Sunninghill got sold and they all regrouped at Royal Lodge? I know it had to do initially with the divorce, correct?

 

[O-H Anglophile]

A bit of a side issue, and I know it's been explained once before, but could someone quickly explain why Sunninghill got sold and they all regrouped at Royal Lodge? I know it had to do initially with the divorce, correct?

Not exactly. Andrew refurbished Royal Lodge and moved in a couple years after the Queen Mother's death in 2002. It had been one of her homes. Sarah moved out of Sunninghill a couple years after that. The divorce was in '96.

 

[Lady Nimue]

Not exactly. Andrew refurbished Royal Lodge and moved in a couple years after the Queen Mother's death in 2002. It had been one of her homes. Sarah moved out of Sunninghill a couple years after that. The divorce was in '96.

Thank you, O-H Anglophile. Confusing.

 

[Rhea6]

It's really sad how the BRF works ! In the way the younger siblings are treated !
I mean most families bring up all their children to be treated equally . For example - Harry is doing such good work with sentrbale and Invictus and yet he can't be given a proper country home just coz he's the younger sibling ? ?
if we think about it , it's actually quite sad how the monarchy works !

But I remember during the Diana years , she made sure that Harry was never left out and treated with same level of importance as William . I had even read that she told Charles that Harry should not be sidelined .

 

[Iluvbertie]

It all has to do with the lack of ready cash. The BRF aren't as wealthy as many people think they are. The jewels, art collections and palaces don't belong to them.

To avoid death duties everything passes from monarch to monarch. If they didn't have that exemption then quite a lot of the fortune would go to the state at the death of each monarch. By passing everything to Charles and then to William and then to George the wealth remains in the family rather than quite a lot disappearing each generation. Remember that some of Margaret's jewels had to be sold to pay the death duties on her estate which is also why the Gloucester's had to move out of Barnwell Manor - at KP they live rent free but they have to rent out Barnwell to increase their income to cover what they had to sell to pay the death duties of the late Duke and Duchess - which was deferred from the death of the Duke until the Duchess died.

Remember too that the late Duchess of Kent was the only war widow in Britain not allowed to claim a war widow's pension as the King felt that would send the wrong message and so she had to make do on whatever she was given by the King and what he husband inherited after he paid death duties on it.

In 1997 when Diana died and she left the princes her money they could have claimed some exemption to paying death duties on it because she died so soon after the divorce so the entire amount could have been returned to Charles but the decision was to pay the 40% death duties due to the low popularity of the BRF at the time.

 

[Pranter]

It's really sad how the BRF works ! In the way the younger siblings are treated !
I mean most families bring up all their children to be treated equally . For example - Harry is doing such good work with sentrbale and Invictus and yet he can't be given a proper country home just coz he's the younger sibling ? ?
if we think about it , it's actually quite sad how the monarchy works !

But I remember during the Diana years , she made sure that Harry was never left out and treated with same level of importance as William . I had even read that she told Charles that Harry should not be sidelined .

I must of missed where someone here said Harry couldn't have a country home if he wants one?

Most of us have been talking about him having one if he chooses and are sure that his brother/father will help out.


LaRae

 

[Skippyboo]

It's not that he can't get a country home, it multiple homes that are unlikely. Charles will have to pay for the royal expenses of Harry plus his brothers and sisters, cousins plus maintenance on Balmoral and Sandringham with the income from the Duchy of Lancaster.

 

[MichelleQ2]

I think Harry will be just fine. I am sure he will have 2 homes; one in the city (KP) and a country home of some sort of which his father will renovate and upgrade. I dont expect a new purchase to be made as the RF has access to many homes, properties and estates.

Regarding HM and how she dealt with each of her children - Parents adapt and change.
Life does that to you. I think it is important to remember Anne married Mark Phillips in 1973 and Edward was married in 1999 - two completely different worlds in the BRF and in the UK. By the time Edward married Sophie, HM had dealt with 3 divorces and subsequent property settlements, taxation laws and the death taxes of a former daughter in law. Not unlike how HM handles jewels now - I think long term loans are becoming the standard to protect the family assets.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

I think Harry will be just fine. I am sure he will have 2 homes; one in the city (KP) and a country home of some sort of which his father will renovate and upgrade. I dont expect a new purchase to be made as the RF has access to many homes, properties and estates.

Regarding HM and how she dealt with each of her children - Parents adapt and change.
Life does that to you. I think it is important to remember Anne married Mark Phillips in 1973 and Edward was married in 1999 - two completely different worlds in the BRF and in the UK. By the time Edward married Sophie, HM had dealt with 3 divorces and subsequent property settlements, taxation laws and the death taxes of a former daughter in law. Not unlike how HM handles jewels now - I think long term loans are becoming the standard to protect the family assets.

Edward leased Bagshot prior to his engagment. He had a television film production company and was not a working Royal.
Edward and Sophie were also not working Royals at the time of their marriage. It was only later, that trying to continue careers (as son and daughter-in-law of the monarch) became too fraught with drama, they left their companies and began careers as working Royals within The Firm.
Those circumstances played into some of the decisions as well.

Harry is expected to be a working Royal.

 

[scriptgirl]

Could Harry live in York House after his marriage?

How many big apartments are there in Kensington? Could Harry live in Buckingham Palace?

Could Meghan and Harry live in Windsor Castle? Are there actually large apartments in Buckingham Palace like there are in KP?

 

[Curryong]

I suppose in theory he could. Charles and his sons lived there during the 1990s. However, it's mostly used as offices now for CH staff. It would probably need a lot of refurbishing etc.

 

[AdmirerUS]

How many big apartments are there in Kensington? Could Harry live in Buckingham Palace?

You can spend an entire afternoon trying to figure out the configurations of the large apartments at KP. If you do a Google image search for KENSINGTON PALACE APARTMENTS the best visuals of how the old joint is laid out come up first. They also tell you who lives where, although the configurations change over time/renos/deaths/marriages, etc.

Harry could live at Buck Palace, although it is slated for major rolling renovations starting soon. So for a decade or so, various and changing offices and apartments will be shut down for Reno (asbestos, fire protection and heating/cooling and utility upgrades, etc.) and it will be one hot mess. A section will shut down for Reno, then reopen and another section will get closed for repairs. Not the greatest option.

IMO opinion, it is unlikely Her Majesty will force out her contemporary royals from KP. I've been wrong a lot here on the forums though. More likely that she would force out office staffers to make room for Harry. Even then, it would cause major Reno and time. And I think Charles would be more likely to leverage open some KP apartment.

And I think that's why a lot of people think Clarence House is in the future for Harry. It's had some utility/HVAC Reno. Dad will vacate when the time comes. It's more "comfy" than Windsor Castle. It's secure. It's also not the loveliest of layouts but it has some really great rooms. Kinda like most old estates.

But in the short term, there are no "obvious" London area choices IMO.

EDIT - I used "Reno" as shorthand for renovation and autocorrect insisted on capitalization. Just know, I am referring to renovations and not Reno, the gambling Mecca.

 

[Lady Nimue]

IMO opinion, it is unlikely Her Majesty will force out her contemporary royals from KP. I've been wrong a lot here on the forums though. More likely that she would force out office staffers to make room for Harry. Even then, it would cause major Reno and time. And I think Charles would be more likely to leverage open some KP apartment.

Do you mean Charles would do that for Harry or for himself? If for himself, why? I'm being obtuse.

 

[Countessmeout]

Do you mean Charles would do that for Harry or for himself? If for himself, why? I'm being obtuse.

For his son.

He has no reason to need an apartment in Kensington. He has Clarence House. And soon will have Buckingham in a few years and all his mother has. He certainly isn't about to downsize to an apartment in Kensington.

The suggestion is that Charles would make plans to free up space in KP for his younger son. By moving offices most likely. Considering they are building the underground offices, clearly that is already in the process. Whether Harry will be given some of the freed space stands to be seen.

 

[hel]

He could, in theory, live in Windsor Castle, but it would mean a regular 45-minute commute each way into the offices he shares with William and Catherine in KP. A commute that would, because of security, massively inconvenience the other daily users of the M4. I don't think it's practical.

With that said, if he's going to live out in Windsor, I'd think they'd put him in Frogmore rather than the Castle itself.

It's my understanding that there are no large apartments in BP in the same way they've carved up KP -- the children of the monarch who have their official London residence there have what we'd consider suites, rather than apartments.

 

[scriptgirl]

So maybe Frogmore should be Harry's country home!

 

[Iluvbertie]

That would probably work well. It is, like Royal Lodge and Bagshot, a Crown Estate property and so already has the necessary security.

He could then have a London base at BP or St James - like Andrew, Edward and Anne - and a country house that is also part of the Crown Estate - like the Queen's younger sons.

 

[Curryong]

But is it necessarily near to friends and the places deep in the countryside where Harry likes to hang out, the polo crowd he's played with, or the shoots he has sometimes participated in at weekends? He and his brother do shoot on the Sandringham estate. Frogmore may be satisfactory and a nice building, and probably Harry could do things with the gardens as apparently he has a green thumb, but is it located where he wants to be?

Also, it's used for charity events and has guided tours of house and estate on certain dates in the summer.

 

[Countessmeout]

Frogmore would be a good idea. Though not used as a main residence since Grand Duchess Xenia lived there in the 20's and 30's, it is used so in good repair. When the Britania was decommissioned, Philip refurbished some of the rooms of the house with items from the yacht.

Well if they married at St George's, their reception could be their house warming. Peter and Autumn who married at St George's, had their reception at Frogmore.

Also getting ahead of myself, but when they had kids they could follow the similar schooling path as the Wessex kids have.

 

[padams2359]

Everybody wants to live with the family cemetery in the back yard. Maybe the Fort.

 

[Iluvbertie]

The problem with Fort Belvedere is that it is leased. The lease remaining 78 years on the lease were sold in 1976 by the Lascelles family and now is owned by a Canadian millionaire who has spent quite a lot of their own money refurbishing it including putting in their polo stud. That would have to be repaid if the Crown Estates were to attempt to buy back the lease - as is the case with Andrew's lease of Royal Lodge.