Former Prince Andrew Profited From Subletting Royal Estate Cottages, Audit Finds

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew and brother to King Charles III of England, generated rental income from three cottages on a royal estate where he himself lived rent-free for over two decades, a government spending watchdog has revealed.

The National Audit Office disclosed Friday that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor collected money by subletting cottages on the Royal Lodge estate near Windsor Castle, despite paying only a nominal “peppercorn rent” for the property under a 2003 lease agreement. The estate included a 30-room mansion and eight cottages, three of which he was permitted to sublet.

The report also revealed that Andrew’s daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, currently occupy rent-subsidised palace properties funded by their uncle, King Charles III.

Crucially, the audit office did not disclose how much rental income Andrew received, a gap that drew sharp criticism from lawmakers. Margaret Hodge, a Labour peer and former chair of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, called the omission alarming.

“It’s shocking that the National Audit Office was not able to establish how much money Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor secured from the properties he let,” she said.

The review was triggered by a parliamentary request following Andrew’s removal from Royal Lodge by the king after his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein came to light. He has since relocated to the Sandringham Estate in eastern England.