The Prince and Princess of Wales are paying an annual rent of £307,500 for Forest Lodge, their family residence located in Windsor Great Park. Official documents filed at the Land Registry this week reveal that William and Kate are now the registered leaseholders of the Grade II-listed property, which includes the main mansion as well as two cottages used for staff accommodation.

The 20-year lease was signed by the couple in July last year, but the rental amount was not publicly known until the recent disclosure. The new rent represents an increase of nearly £100,000 compared to the previous tenants, Alexander Fitzgibbons and Cristina Stenbeck, who held the lease from 2019. Fitzgibbons, chairman of the party planning company Fait Accompli — which organized the wedding receptions of both the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2011 and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018 — had been paying £216,000 annually.

The revised rent figure reportedly followed three independent market valuations conducted by Hamptons and Savills on behalf of the Crown Estate, and Knight Frank representing the Waleses. It is understood that the couple regard Forest Lodge as their "forever home" and intend to seek an extension of the lease upon its expiry.

Funding for the rent comes from the Prince of Wales’s private income generated by the Duchy of Cornwall estate. While exact tax payments are not publicly disclosed, Kensington Palace has previously stated that William pays tax at the highest applicable rate. The Palace declined to comment on the recent lease registration and rental details.

The disclosure arrives amid heightened scrutiny of property arrangements between members of the royal family and the Crown Estate, an independent commercial entity managing a portfolio worth around £15 billion, with profits passed to the Treasury. In December, the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee announced an inquiry into the Crown Estate’s operations following earlier revelations concerning rental agreements within the Windsor Estate. These included reports that Prince Andrew, William’s uncle, had paid a nominal rent on Royal Lodge for two decades despite an £8 million refurbishment investment, before relocating to Marsh Farm on the Sandringham estate earlier this year.

The investigation reflects ongoing public interest in the management of royal properties and the financial disclosures related to them.