The situation with the disgraced former Prince Andrew affects not only him, but also his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, and his children, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. Andrew has now been stripped of his titles and ordered to vacate his home in the Royal Lodge due to repeated scandals linked to his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. But how did this really affect his daughters?
Allegedly, the King evicting Andrew from the Royal Lodge, where he had a 75-year lease, will end up hurting both of them a bit, as Andrew was reported to be hoping that one day he could pass the property on to his children.
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Now, property expert Elliot Castle, of We Buy Any Home, says the door to any potential inheritance has closed “for good”.
“[This] it would only have been possible while the lease remained in force,” he said. “Once that lease is surrendered or terminated, there is nothing to pass on. From the property point of view, that closes the door completely. The Royal Lodge would revert entirely to the Crown Estate, with no residual claim to Andrew or his daughters.”
In the lease there were specifications about the conditions that needed to be maintained for the property, and a clause where Andrew had to “allow the landlord. [Crown Estate] and persons authorized by the landlord at any reasonable time with reasonable notice to enter the premises to ascertain whether the tenant’s obligations herein have been complied with and to examine their state and condition and use and to take a plan or prepare a schedule of fixtures or a schedule of dilapidations and make assessments.”
Allegedly, however, the property was not inspected once in the 22 years Andrew lived there.
With Royal Lodge worth £30m, passing it on to Beatrice and Eugenie would have meant quite a sizeable inheritance. But it shouldn’t be.
And RadarOnline.com is reporting that they both expected the property to go to them, so the loss of that left them “sorry” at the injustice. “There was an expectation that the Royal Lodge would one day benefit Beatrice and Eugenie, if only as a safety net. That has now completely gone.”
“They are angry because this is not about extravagance. It was about long-term security that was taken away. Their dream of an easy life in retirement is now gone,” said a source.
Part of their anger stems from expectations about what it means to have a lease on the property. “The understanding was that the arrangement would insulate the property from short-term drama. That belief proved misplaced.”
Both Beatrice and Eugenie have homes, so this was never about them going to the Royal Lodge. A source said, “This wasn’t just a place to live. It was a valuable rental asset that warranted a significant personal investment over time.”
Another source said: “No princess needs the Royal Lodge for housing, but losing a $40 million asset changes the shape of their future,” adding, “They feel they are paying the price for decisions they didn’t make. The anger is real, and it’s directed directly at how their father’s scandal continues to narrow their options.”
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