Frogmore rent smoke and mirrors

[CathyorClaire]

It now transpires the much trumpeted £2.4m repayment expanded at the last minute to suddenly include eighteen months 'market rent' despite not increasing has actually melted down to a rent free deal for Harold on the grounds the refurb 'increased the property's value'. It's also rather conveniently saved him up to £690k.

www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/harry-meghan-frogmore-cottage-rent-duke-duchess-sussex-b1068368.html

It's never going to be rented out commercially so it's hard to see where said 'value' lies.

TBF he's not the only one with a sweet deal on a Crown Estate property. Andrew and Edward have very cosy leases on the giant gaffs they haunt and there's no evidence Andrew's alleged fraudster mate (the one depositing unquestioned amounts for wedding and birthday gifts into the York family's bank accounts) has paid a penny for the Crown Estate Mayfair flat he's lived in .

Outrageous system.

I always thought the "2.4M" payback was a crock of sh*t.

Wouldn't surprise me if Charles actually gave him the money to "pay it".

At least Edward is actually taking part in Royal duties. Andrew should definitely be downgraded.

I never believed they paid the money back

Wouldn't surprise me if Charles actually gave him the money to "pay it".

I’ve said this before, I don’t believe they have ever paid a penny towards Frogmore Cottage, we would certainly have heard from the duo moaning they wanted their money back when the got evicted.

I agree, I think it is very likely that Charles paid the 2.4m to damp down the public outcry.

I have seen speculation that the £2.4million was for fit out and furnishings only. The repairs and bringing it up to a habitable condition were paid for by the queen.

I guess when a single sofa blanket costs £3,500, it makes sense that you could easily reach a few million to furnish it.

Is anyone really surprised?

How did the value not increase? it was an uninhabitable shack. The RF better pay H&M their 1.7 million back..If I were Harry and Meghan, i'd call in my lawyers.

I don't believe Harry has paid anything either. Blood is thicker than water. Charles will always prioritize his comfort over the faceless masses.

If anything, he may be helping them quietly bridge the gap in their finances in Montecito and told them to let go of Frogmore because he cannot justify doing it for two homes.

How did the value not increase? it was an uninhabitable shack.

It was previously being used by estate workers so hardly 'uninhabitable'

It can't be sold or rented on the open market so claiming an increase in value is effectively meaningless.

.If I were Harry and Meghan, i'd call in my lawyers.

Maybe they will although the fact the famously litigious duo haven't as yet might be telling.

I think this once again demonstrates a wider case for in-depth scrutiny of royal finances.

Charles has the allocation of CE properties at his disposal along with deciding the terms of said allocation. He doesn't need to worry about achieving market rents, value or even profit for a deal because the Sovereign Grant is guaranteed never to reduce while the cut to the treasury can and does fluctuate (see the way the SG was cushioned from any Covid related hits).

No skin off his nose if he doesn't cut a realistic deal. I've always suspected someone took a hit on Frogmore's 'rent' along the way and we now find that as ever it's not the royals.

Outrageous.

Agree with everything you've said.

I wondered how long it would be before there was a thread on this, but you're right about the smoke and mirrors Cathy and right again that H&M weren't alone in enjoying a similar deal

Given the opacity of anything to do with royal finances I tend to keep an open mind on these issues - however there'll doubtless be more versions of this story to come, and more baseless insistence that some chosen detail "proves" what H&M have paid

People with a financial/policy background and an interest in the finances of the monarchy need to hotfoot it over to the civil service job pages as HMT is recruiting a Head of Royal Finances - be quick though, it closes tomorrow!

Don’t make laugh, if H&M had paid anything towards Frogmore we would have heard from them demanding the money back, their silence speaks volumes.

Patience. When they start talking, I don't want people complaining lol

It can be rented on the open market. Lots of Crown properties are rented out although there is a very strict vetting process when it’s a property that’s also close to members of the royal family.

Catherine Zeta Jones just started renting an apartment in St. James’s Palace where Princess Anne has her London base.

It can be rented on the open market.

Given the last time it was occupied by anyone other than royals or staff was in the 1840's and it's now considered a secure enough spot for Andrew who's been stripped of his personal security, it's highly unlikely we'll be seeing it in a Windsor estate agent's window any time soon.

I never believed they had paid the money back either. Rather than get in an unpleasant battle with the gruesome twosome, Charles or the Queen did some sort of deal .

Imagine my surprise that the taxpayer is left picking up the tab

I agree - and I too think that Charles will have inevitably paid for it out of his 'private' funds. No acknowledgement of it from the moaners though.

Reminds me of when they first did a runner, and so many people were fighting their corner 'they'd never do an interview', 'of course they won't write a book', 'they love their family and would never diss them'. Look where we are now.

Bet they've never even thanked Charles.

No acknowledgement of it from the moaners though

I think we can probably take the lack of indignant legal action to recover the funds as an acknowledgment their wallet remain intact 😏

remains

This was posted on another thread re Frogmore apparently from the duo’s Sussex Royal Website

The refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage was funded by the Queen through the Sovereign Grant, reflecting the Monarchy’s responsibility to maintain the upkeep of buildings with historical significance. Expenses related to fixtures, furnishings, and fittings at the official residence – which is owned by the Queen – were funded privately by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Frogmore Cottage will continue to be the property of the Queen. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will continue to use Frogmore Cottage – with the permission of the Queen – as their official residence as they continue to support the Monarchy

So basically they have paid for nothing at all apart from fixtures, fittings and furniture and all that was probably paid for by Charles, I expect the furniture is now in Montecito. Funny how quiet this thread is compared to the other one where all their supporters were clamouring for them to be reimbursed by cruel King Charles……yep tumbleweed.

Same palace who despise H&M confirmed they paid for the rent AND the 2.4M (that they did not need to pay, btw)

Funny how quiet this thread is compared to the other one where all their supporters were clamouring for them to be reimbursed by cruel King Charles……yep tumbleweed.

It is.

And yet we are so often assured that anything H&M related sets MN on fire...

Same palace who despise H&M confirmed they paid for the rent AND the 2.4M (that they did not need to pay, btw)

Why didn't they need to pay it?

As for who actually dug deep, I doubt we'll ever find out given the royals' fixation with financial opacity but I think had it genuinely been Harold the very least that would have happened is that we'd have heard all about it on his recent Worldwide Privacy Tour.

I might be wrong @CathyorClaire , but I'm certain someone posted an excerpt from Harry's book that mentions this ?
I hope someone can find it because I'm sure he said he didn't pay it?
Again I may be remembering wrong!

If they were generous sorts we would hear about it from charities. What we get are putting our name out there with the big donors to confuse, a cheap box of rotting salad for kids in Brooklyn, a useless toy rucksack for a homeless guy and clickclickclickpost.