Prince of Wales ‘paying £100k more than previous tenant to rent Windsor home’
Prince of Wales ‘paying £100k more than previous tenant to rent Windsor home’
Alice LilleySat, May 16, 2026 at 3:27 AM UTC
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The new cost is nearly 50 per cent higher than that paid by the previous tenants - Heritage Images/Hulton Archive
The Prince and Princess of Wales are paying almost £100,000 more than the previous tenants to rent their family home, Forest Lodge in Windsor.
The royals, who are now the registered lease owners of the Grade II-listed mansion, are paying £307,500 every year, according to The Times.
In July 2025, the couple signed a 20-year lease on Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park but the rent was unknown until now.
It is understood that they have agreed to publicly disclose the figure, having registered the official documents for their home.
The couple signed a 20-year lease on Forest Lodge, but the rent was unknown until now - Chris Jackson/Getty Images
The Prince and Princess of Wales are both listed as the lease owners on Forest Lodge in Windsor, paperwork submitted at the Land Registry on Thursday showed.
The lease agreement includes the mansion as well as two cottages within the grounds that are used as staff accommodation.
Documents show that Forest Lodge was previously let for £216,000 per year to Alexander Fitzgibbons, chairman of the party planning business Fait Accompli who signed a joint rental agreement with Cristina Stenbeck, a Swedish businesswoman. The company planned the wedding receptions for both the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2011 and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018.
The new cost, almost 50 per cent higher than that paid by the last tenants, is understood to have been reached after three valuations carried out by Hamptons and Savills on behalf of the Crown Estate, and by Knight Frank on behalf of the couple.
Cristina Stenbeck, a Swedish businesswoman, was one of the previous tenants of the estate - TT News Agency/Reuters
The Prince’s rent is paid using the private income he receives after tax from the earnings of the Duchy of Cornwall estate.
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The Prince and Princess also live at Kensington Palace, their official London residence, alongside Forest Lodge, and Anmer Hall, a mansion on the Sandringham Estate that they received as a wedding gift from Elizabeth II.
The Royal Family has faced heightened scrutiny over the past year about private property deals between the family and the Crown Estate.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor faced criticism after it was revealed that he had not paid rent on Royal Lodge on the Windsor Estate for two decades.
The Palace announced that he would be leaving Royal Lodge in October 2025, at the same time his title of prince was removed.
In February, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor moved out of Royal Lodge to Marsh Farm on the Sandringham Estate.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was forced to move to Marsh Farm after scrutiny over his rental arrangement at Royal Lodge - Martin Pope/Getty Images Europe
The Public Accounts Committee said in December that it was launching an inquiry into royal leases with the Crown Estate.
Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the Conservative committee chairman, said that increased scrutiny over royal property deals would “aid transparency in public interest information”.
Dan Labbad, chief executive officer of the Crown Estate, told the committee: “Following an approach from HRH The Prince of Wales and discussions with the Royal Household, the commissioners were asked to consider entering into a lease of the property to TRH The Prince and Princess of Wales for use as their primary private residence.”
The disclosure came as it was revealed that the Princess would join the Prince on a trip to India for his Earthshot Prize in November.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
