Future Home for Prince Harry

[muriel]

Reposting from post 1564 above

******************************
In terms of housing, my guesses for H&M are as follows:

> They will end up with a reasonable sized apartment at KP in the next year or so. This will be their main London residence

> They will not own a home in the country in the current reign. If they have the place in the country, they may continue to rent it for the forseeable future

> Once Charles is King, they will probably end up with Anmer, if W&C take on Highgrove

> H&M will not get Highgrove. It is too expensive an estate for them to be able to fund the running of.

 

[Kataryn]

Maybe they now enjoy the crowd they meet there in the Cotswolds, people of the "Soho"-group. But once they have their kid, other interests may become further up the list fo them. OTOH I cannot believe Charles didn't plan fo Harry's future, so pobably their new home is already selected but they are doing renovations right now.

 

[Iluvbertie]

Charles will have made some plans - including the massive amount he paid Diana at the time of the divorce.

No doubt he has a trust fund set up for Harry but 99% of Charles' estate will end up being left to William - to ensure that all the money stays in the BRF.

 

[sndral]

The rent v. buy discussion is interesting to me because the Queen seemingly changed from buying her children homes - Anne currently owns Gatscomb and Andrew did own Sunninghill.
Now both Andrew and Edward ‘rent’ - they have long term leases on their respective Windsor homes, thus there must be a reason that the RF in recent years has favored leases over outright ownership. Perhaps inheritance taxes? Andrew and Sarah did buy the Swiss chalet, but as far as I know Edward has no real property to pass on to Louise and James.
The Michaels had to sell their country home due to the expense of its’ upkeep and Margaret’s son sold her Mutique home.
Charles as far as I know does not personally own any real property that Harry could inherit. Charles and William are differently situated than the other children/grandchildren of the Queen, IMO.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Harry or the York daughters buy or are gifted property going forward. Their trusts provide income, and to use principal to invest in a property thereby decreasing income and increasing expenses to maintain an estate might not be the soundest financial move in their cases.

 

[Somebody]

Well I very much agree with you on renting, anyone regardless of who you are or how much money you have seems to me a waste of money on something that is no value to you in the end. I see that some people in this world who have bank accounts with no end in sight of money would consider renting as they have no understanding of the value of money when they have everything at their disposal.

The main advantage of renting is flexibility. Other than that many people in the world rent because they cannot afford to buy a house (this of course doesn't apply to Harry and Meghan).

 

[Somebody]

I would think they would plan for this ahead of time as they most certainly knew they wanted a family........all children need stability in life and I really do think that even William and Catherine take that into consideration when having children. IMHO renting when you can afford to buy is still a huge waste of money......for then in buying you can always sell for a profit and buy another!

To sell you need a buyer and depending on the market it can take a long time to sell and you might loose money over it (selling within the first few years typically means a significant loss even if the market is stable because of all the associated costs - so, while renting surely costs money it is more predictable). So, while the above is the ideal situation, it is not as certain as that.

 

[Osipi]

Harry and Meghan, IMO, are being pragmatic. They wanted and needed something away from KP and Nottingham Cottage to go to and kick back, visit with friends and be away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Renting a place in the Cotswolds is ideal as it serves their purpose, isn't binding as a "forever" home and is much more private (great for a honeymooning couple) and large enough to have friends (and gramma to be) stay over unnoticed. Its a place to be while they sort out where their permanent spot will be. For all we know, they could be on a rent to own plan.

The Sussexes are in a period of transition. Transitioning into their own household, from being single people to newlyweds expecting their first child. Transitioning into a household with more than one dog. Transitioning into their roles as full time working members supporting the monarchy. Transitioning into the rest of their life. They're not being hasty about anything or doing it haphazardly.

The Sussexes have time now. No hurries and no worries about a permanent home. They're doing it the pragmatic way.

Come to think of it, once they do give up the property they're renting in the Cotswolds, the owner of that property, should he decide to rent it again, can easily do so as it would go quickly with the fact becoming known "Harry and Meghan Slept Here!"

 

[muriel]

The rent v. buy discussion is interesting to me because the Queen seemingly changed from buying her children homes - Anne currently owns Gatscomb and Andrew did own Sunninghill.
Now both Andrew and Edward ‘rent’ - they have long term leases on their respective Windsor homes, thus there must be a reason that the RF in recent years has favored leases over outright ownership. Perhaps inheritance taxes? Andrew and Sarah did buy the Swiss chalet, but as far as I know Edward has no real property to pass on to Louise and James.
The Michaels had to sell their country home due to the expense of its’ upkeep and Margaret’s son sold her Mutique home.
Charles as far as I know does not personally own any real property that Harry could inherit. Charles and William are differently situated than the other children/grandchildren of the Queen, IMO.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Harry or the York daughters buy or are gifted property going forward. Their trusts provide income, and to use principal to invest in a property thereby decreasing income and increasing expenses to maintain an estate might not be the soundest financial move in their cases.

The Queen has not changed her mind on but vs rent, its just the properties her younger sons have chosen to live in. Neither properties were available for sale, but could be leased out long term. Andrew and Edward live on Crown Estate properties that they acquired long leases on. The bulk of the lease rentals were paid at the outset, and it a small annual charge is now payable. So for their life times, it is like owning the property.

 

[Kataryn]

Charles will have made some plans - including the massive amount he paid Diana at the time of the divorce.

No doubt he has a trust fund set up for Harry but 99% of Charles' estate will end up being left to William - to ensure that all the money stays in the BRF.

But there are properties that belong to the estates that are privately owned by the queen. I don't think if Camilla ever becomes queen dowager she'd want more than stay in Clarence House, so Birkhall could go to Harry. Both Meghan and Harry love long walks on private land, so this could well the place they decide to spent their time on the countryside. And who says that life at Balmoral or Sandringham, even Windsor stays as it is under King Charles? They could have their own flat at Windsor for the weekends - who says they need a large house completely staffed when they could use Charles' staff just like when Harry and William lived at Clarence House? I bet Charles would love to have them as live-in relatives over the weekend, when he has more time to spend in the nursery with the grandkids.

 

[Osipi]

And who says that life at Balmoral or Sandringham, even Windsor stays as it is under King Charles?

This is a good point. The Queen has reigned for so long that how things are done now seems ingrained into us because that is, for most of us, all we've ever known. How HM does things have almost come to be "tradition" as we know it.

I would imagine that there are many plans in the works already set to go as far as how Charles wants things to be but its not done that it becomes public knowledge. Its kind of crude to be purporting this and that about Charles' reign as it kind of has him saying "when my mother dies....". The wheels of change are churning but we just don't hear them.

All we can do about Harry's future residences is give opinions on what we see and what we feel and then maybe be totally surprised and say "I didn't see *that* one coming!!".

 

[Pranter]

The rent v. buy discussion is interesting to me because the Queen seemingly changed from buying her children homes - Anne currently owns Gatscomb and Andrew did own Sunninghill.
Now both Andrew and Edward ‘rent’ - they have long term leases on their respective Windsor homes, thus there must be a reason that the RF in recent years has favored leases over outright ownership. Perhaps inheritance taxes? Andrew and Sarah did buy the Swiss chalet, but as far as I know Edward has no real property to pass on to Louise and James.
The Michaels had to sell their country home due to the expense of its’ upkeep and Margaret’s son sold her Mutique home.
Charles as far as I know does not personally own any real property that Harry could inherit. Charles and William are differently situated than the other children/grandchildren of the Queen, IMO.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Harry or the York daughters buy or are gifted property going forward. Their trusts provide income, and to use principal to invest in a property thereby decreasing income and increasing expenses to maintain an estate might not be the soundest financial move in their cases.

The Queen owns Gatscomb. Anne lives there, and one or both of her children and their families as well.


LaRae

 

[jacqui24]

The Queen has not changed her mind on but vs rent, its just the properties her younger sons have chosen to live in. Neither properties were available for sale, but could be leased out long term. Andrew and Edward live on Crown Estate properties that they acquired long leases on. The bulk of the lease rentals were paid at the outset, and it a small annual charge is now payable. So for their life times, it is like owning the property.

I'm also guessing the advantage of living on a Crown Estate property is probably because of security? We just don't live in the same world as 20 years ago anymore. That's something to take into consideration.

 

[muriel]

I'm also guessing the advantage of living on a Crown Estate property is probably because of security? We just don't live in the same world as 20 years ago anymore. That's something to take into consideration.

Not sure how Crown Estate properties help with security.

The Queen owns Gatscomb. Anne lives there, and one or both of her children and their families as well.


LaRae

Not sure if the Queen owns Gatcombe. As I understand it, the Queen paid for Gatcombe, but it is owned either by Anne or I'd held in trust for Anne and her children.

 

[Pranter]

Not sure if the Queen owns Gatcombe. As I understand it, the Queen paid for Gatcombe, but it is owned either by Anne or I'd held in trust for Anne and her children.

I was watching a documentary a while back and it was mentioned. Then I was reading a bio of Anne's and it came up there too. I've done a little research online as well and everything I can find says the Queen bought Gatscomb and it's part of her properties..but Anne (and presumably her children) can live there till whenever. I don't know about the Trust part. I don't remember that part of it.


LaRae

 

[loonytick]

The pros and cons on renting vs. buying work very differently at the highest end of the real estate scale than they do for most of us in the middle. Renting has long been considered a smart option for the wealthy who aren’t sure they’re going to stay in a house for years and years. There just aren’t a lot of buyers with the kind of cash necessary to purchase a really high-end place, so selling becomes tricky and a long, drawn out process—you end up with a lot of your net worth tied up in a property that may sit on the market for quite a while. If you’re renting, otoh, you can just walk away in your own schedule. The line marking how long you should expect to live in a place to make ownership make more sense than renting is just drawn in a very different place at that end of the market.

So the question to me isn’t “why are they renting” so much as it is “do they know what they want long-term?” As someone else said upthread, I can’t believe Charles and/or the Queen haven’t presented options already. I wonder if they haven’t been given a choice between main house in country/small place in city or the reverse and are still trying to try out which balance feels better to them.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

The Queen owns Gatscomb. Anne lives there, and one or both of her children and their families as well.


LaRae

Where do you get the information that the Queen owns Gatcombe Park? My understanding has always been that the Queen gifted it to Anne and Mark when they got married as a wedding present.

ETA-I saw what you wrote about the documentary, but everything I’ve read says otherwise. I guess it is one of those things not known for sure.

Not sure how Crown Estate properties help with security.

Because there is 24/7 security already in place and you are not deploying extra perimeter security in an additional location.

 

[muriel]

Because there is 24/7 security already in place and you are not deploying extra perimeter security in an additional location.

The Crown Estate is one of the largest landlords on the country, owning amongst others, most of Regent Street, St James', the seabed around the UK and so on. It is not restricted to properties on the Windsor estate , or other royal residences. The vast majority of CE properties do not have security, and therefore, there is no benefit from that perspective.

 

[Osipi]

After roaming around a bit, from what I can see, Gatcombe Park is owned by The Princess Royal. It was given to her and Mark as a wedding present similar to Sunninghill that was gifted to Andrew and Sarah.

"Gatcombe Park is the privately owned residence of The Princess Royal and her husband, Vice-Admiral Tim Laurence. Originally purchased by The Queen as a wedding gift for her daughter, the property was later expanded to include the neighboring Aston Farm. After divorcing, Princess Anne retained Gatcombe Park while her first husband, Mark Phillips, retained the Aston Farm estate where he still lives. Gatcombe Park is the site of several equestrian events througout the year."

British Royal Residences | Unofficial Royalty

Its my understanding that Mark has moved on and the Aston Farm estate are in trust for Zara and Peter.

Back to Harry. For all we know, Charles could be footing the rental bill for Harry on the Cotswold rental and there are discussions being had with Harry and Meghan, Charles and the Queen as to which residence or property will suit the Sussex family for a long term residence. If the Cotswold property turns out to be where Harry and Meghan prefer to raise their family and its good for security reasons, either the Queen or Charles may decide to purchase it outright for H&M. We'll see what happens when it happens.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

The Crown Estate is one of the largest landlords on the country, owning amongst others, most of Regent Street, St James', the seabed around the UK and so on. It is not restricted to properties on the Windsor estate , or other royal residences. The vast majority of CE properties do not have security, and therefore, there is no benefit from that perspective.

We are not discussing Regent Street. We all know we are discussing properties like Sandringham or Windsor.

 

[muriel]

We are not discussing Regent Street. We all know we are discussing properties like Sandringham or Windsor.

Sandringham is privately owned and is not part of the Crown Estate at all.

 

[Denville]

He certainly has.. the ULTIMATE move, we all eventually make...

What does htat mean?

 

[Osipi]

I was thinking the same thing. If its looking for a third marriage, count me out. Anyways, not the thread for this.

Back to Harry's future home once again.....

 

[padams2359]

If it tax system works the same as the US, a large portion of the rent could be a tax write off as a cost of doing business and entertaining expense.

 

[jacqui24]

If it tax system works the same as the US, a large portion of the rent could be a tax write off as a cost of doing business and entertaining expense.

No. That's not how it works. In Britain or US.

 

[wyevale]

I apologise, as 'upthread', I implied Captain Phillips is deceased.. that is INCORRECT.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

Sandringham is privately owned and is not part of the Crown Estate at all.

Ok, granted the exact terminology was incorrect, but I believe the point being made was places where Royals have homes on grounds already under heavy security, lessens the security issues.

 

[Pranter]

It always comes back around to Sandringham for me...there are a lot more pros than cons. Security, cost, options etc etc. But they may very well do their own thing away from there.



LaRae

 

[jacqui24]

I just haven’t seen much interest from even Harry for Sandringham other than Christmas with the family.

 

[Pranter]

Well we really wouldn't know would we? They are all pretty good at moving around under radar.


LaRae

 

[Curryong]

I know when Harry was single he used to use Wood Farm on the estate to host shoots with his male friends. He was there before his marriage doing precisely that on a couple of weekends.

When both William and Harry were bachelors they would go to Sandringham to shoot quite a few times a year. I come from Norfolk originally and have family members who live near the estate and they and I would see them and other royals driving about with friends.

However, now Harry has a wife and is establishing his own family he may just simply not want to live too close to his brother and his family, fond though he is of them all. (Of all the royals I'd say that Charles likes Sandringham the least, certainly in the past few decades since he purchased Highgrove.)