In August, we learned that the Prince and Princess of Wales planned to move into yet another “forever home,” Forest Lodge. They were giving up Adelaide Cottage because it felt “cursed,” and because it wasn’t grand enough for Kate. Forest Lodge is a large, eight-bedroom manor house. Upgrades and renovations began over the summer. The Wales family moved into the home in late October. Alongside the proclamations that this would be their “forever home,” we also learned that Will and Kate evicted a bunch of people close to Forest Lodge, and they were grabbing 150 acres of public park land, shutting down one of the entrances to Windsor Great Park, and causing chaotic detours for the local Christmas-tree farm. Locals are justifiably furious. This whole time, I’ve wondered if this Forest Lodge move was something half-assed and thrown together last-minute to placate Kate. Well… it looks like it was NOT half-assed, at least from a financial aspect. There’s a new inquiry into the Crown Estates, and a parliamentary committee got their hands on the Waleses’ lease paperwork.
A key detail about Kate Middleton and Prince William’s new lease at Forest Lodge has been revealed. On Dec. 2, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the House of Commons published new details about the former Prince Andrew’s lease at Royal Lodge, his longtime home in Windsor that he has agreed to move out of after King Charles stripped his princely title in October.
Among the documents was a briefing prepared for PAC about The Crown Estate’s current administration of leases on residences occupied by members of the royal family, which included new information about the Prince and Princess of Wales’ lease of Forest Lodge on the Windsor Estate. It’s thought that the family plans to continue living there even after William becomes king one day, and the new briefing revealed that William and Kate have a 20-year lease of Forest Lodge.
“Their Royal Highnesses The Prince and Princess of Wales hold a 20-year non-assignable lease with The Crown Estate for Forest Lodge, commencing 5 July 2025,” it states.
“Previously a ‘grace and favour’ residence, it was returned to The Crown Estate by HM Queen Elizabeth II in the early 1990s and has since been let on the open market,” it continues.
“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,” it says.
From there, the Crown Estate made arrangements to negotiate terms, conduct due diligence, seek independent valuation advice and ensure all standards were met before entering contracts
“Negotiations were conducted on an arm’s length basis, to ensure appropriate market terms were agreed. Two independent valuers (Hamptons and Savills) were appointed by The Crown Estate to provide valuations of the Property and to review the final Heads of Terms,” it said.
The briefing detailed that both the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Crown Estate received independent legal advice as things became finalized, and that the lease for Forest Lodge was established at “open market rent.”
So, the committee has revealed the big surprise, which is that both sides did their due diligence as they negotiated a 20-year lease on Forest Lodge. What’s crazy is that while “independent valuers” were brought in to assess Forest Lodge and provide comparison figures for market rates on similar homes, it doesn’t sound like the 150-acre land grab was included in the assessment, right? Once William and Kate secured the lease, they behaved in the typically arrogant royal way, ordering evictions of lease-holders close to the lodge, grabbing parkland for their uninterrupted view, and adding a huge amount of security upgrades to the now massive estate. It’s one thing to say “this home would have cost $20 million on the open market,” but it’s quite another to run roughshod over the public’s access to a park, not to mention adding 150 acres of parkland to the property for “security.”
Incidentally, people are using the 20-year lease as a gotcha for the Waleses, as in “see, it’s not their forever home, they only plan to stay there for twenty years!” Yeah, that part doesn’t bother me. It’s not a gotcha. I will be shocked if they stay there for twenty years though.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
