Watchdog examines royal housing leases, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor could get payout

A public spending watchdog has cast new light on how royal homes are allocated, leased and monetized, with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor potentially in line for compensation from a Windsor estate lease even after giving up the property.

The National Audit Office said seven members of the Royal Family occupied five properties leased from The Crown Estate, while two more properties were leased for staff use. Its review came after the Public Accounts Committee announced an inquiry into The Crown Estate on 2 December 2025, and after Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown wrote to The Crown Estate Commissioners and HM Treasury on 29 October 2025 seeking further information on Royal Lodge.

The NAO said lease terms varied sharply across the royal property portfolio, with differences in upfront premium payments, refurbishment costs, early surrender clauses, assignability and subletting rights. That variability matters because it goes to the heart of public accountability: taxpayers are being asked to trust a system in which valuable estate assets are handled through bespoke arrangements that are not uniform and, in some cases, depend on judgments about market value and maintenance liabilities.

Royal Lodge drew the closest scrutiny. The NAO said three cottages on the estate were sublet and the income generated was payable to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. The cottages had been vacant since April 2026. The lease also contained an early surrender clause, and the watchdog said Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor requested early surrender on 30 October 2025. Depending on the notice and dilapidation costs when handover is assessed, he could be entitled to compensation of £301,967.66.

The report placed that case inside a much broader housing system. The Royal Household provides 11 working members of the Royal Family with seven residences within occupied royal palaces at no cost in return for official duties. Three properties in occupied royal palaces are rented to non-working royals at around 60% of open market value, with the Privy Purse currently meeting those rents. The NAO also said the Household generated £3.6 million in rental income in 2024-25 from non-official use of residential properties.

The watchdog said some rental arrangements for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie had been based on out-of-date market valuations in earlier years before being updated in 2026. It also said King Charles III pays for the accommodation of Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, even though both are non-working royals.

The findings sharpen a question that has followed Royal Lodge since the lease controversy of late 2025: whether the rules governing publicly supported estates are clear, consistently enforced and capable of showing the public where value is created, where it is lost and who benefits from it.