Recently it was revealed that they had given the keys of Frogmore Cottage – which the couple rents from the Queen – to Prince Harry’s pregnant cousin Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank.
An outcry among Brits immediately followed, with many slamming the pair for passing on a piece of property that was never theirs in the first place. Here, New Idea examines the foursome’s clandestine real estate deal.
1. The Brooksbanks have to pay rent
According to reports, it’s “more of a sublet situation” engineered between Harry and Meghan – who recently bought a $20 million mansion in California – in which Eugenie and her hubby pay their keep to the Sussexes.
It’s been estimated that the market rate to rent Frogmore, which sits within the Windsor Castle grounds and was extensively renovated by the Sussexes, is around $55,000 per month.
2. They can be kicked out!
The reigning monarch owns Frogmore Cottage and loans it to family members at his or her behest, and as soon as the Sussexes moved to the US, the Queen demanded they pay rent to keep their UK home base in their name.
Given that the Sussexes are their so-called landlords rather than signing out of their lease – which may be for visa reasons, so Harry can prove he still has an English home address – the deal suggests they could turf out their tenants at any time within UK law.
3. What does her Majesty think?
Despite owning the five-bedroom property, which she gifted to her grandson and new bride after their 2018 wedding on the understanding they would be working for the Commonwealth, it’s been reported that the Sussexes and Princess Eugenie haven’t kept the 94-year-old in the loop.
“If that’s true, it doesn’t get much more disrespectful to Her Majesty,” says a palace source. “That said, Harry has pulled so many terrible stunts over the past year that nothing surprises her anymore. She knew Eugenie and Jack needed a bigger space, but this was the last thing she expected.”
4. What about their stuff?
It is understood that Harry and Meghan recently had all of their belongings from inside the cottage shipped from the UK to the US in the dead of night.
“It’s fairly conclusive that they have no intention on coming home for a long time, if ever,” the source tells.