Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor received rental income from sub-letting three cottages on the Royal Lodge estate, according to a report by the National Audit Office. The report does not state how much money he earned from the arrangement, but it confirms that the cottages were among properties linked to the Royal Lodge lease he held from the Crown Estate.
The BBC reported that Mountbatten-Windsor paid £7.5 million for repairs when he took on the Royal Lodge lease, which meant he did not have to pay a monthly rent on the main property. The lease also covered a wider estate that included eight nearby properties, and it allowed him to sub-let three cottages. Those cottages were sub-let until April 2026. Palace sources, according to the BBC, suggested the homes were rented to staff or retired staff and that the income was only enough to cover running costs.
The watchdog report into royal residences also said that the King pays for accommodation used by Mountbatten-Windsor’s daughters, Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, even though neither is a working royal. Princess Eugenie has a property in Kensington Palace, while Princess Beatrice has one in St James’s Palace. Their housing is funded through the monarch’s personal money, known as the privy purse, and the payments go to the Royal Household. Both palaces are maintained with public funding through the Sovereign Grant.
A Palace spokesperson welcomed the National Audit Office report and said it was consistent with the Royal Household’s commitment to transparency. The spokesperson added that the findings should help correct, clarify, or contextualise several points about royal properties. The Palace said arrangements for properties managed by the Royal Household vary depending on factors such as location, tenants, and purpose, in order to ensure residences are used appropriately.
Mountbatten-Windsor left Royal Lodge earlier this year and moved to Sandringham in Norfolk, but he still holds the lease on Royal Lodge until October 2026. The revelation adds further detail to the financial arrangements surrounding royal residences and the use of publicly maintained and privately funded royal housing. It also highlights the unusual structure of the Royal Lodge lease, the mix of private and public support across royal properties, and the continuing scrutiny over how those arrangements are managed.
