The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead approved renovation plans for Forest Lodge that included replacing doors and windows, stripping interior walls, renovating ceilings, and repairing floors with a minimalist update, according to the Independent.
“The Wales family will move,” Kensington Palace and the Crown Estate said without specifying a date, according to the Economic Times.
People reported that Prince William and Catherine, the Princess of Wales, were expected to relocate to Forest Lodge later in the year, with their three children, with their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
Forest Lodge, in Windsor Great Park, a short drive from Windsor Castle, offers the family more space and privacy. The move will also allow the Prince and Princess of Wales to be more involved in their children’s daily lives.
The property is also about ten minutes from the Lambrook School, which all three children attend.
The Royal Family plans to move
The couple are planning to cover the renovation and upkeep costs privately. They will be paying market rent on the property, likely using income from the Duchy of Cornwall, which generated about $30 million per year for the prince and held assets valued at over £1 billion, according to People.
Forest Lodge is a Grade II historic property, listed eight-bedroom Georgian mansion valued at about £16 million. It features Venetian windows, ornate moldings, a barrel-vaulted hallway, a tennis court, a private pond, and extensive gardens, according to the Economic Times.
First listed in 1972, it underwent a £1.5 million renovation in 2001 to preserve period details. The freehold belonged to the king as part of the Crown Estate, according to the Independent. The home offers long views, including the arch of Wembley Stadium visible from the prince’s bedroom, according to the Independent.
“Windsor has become their home. However, over the last few years, while they lived at Adelaide Cottage, there were some really difficult times,” a royal source told BBC News.
“Moving gives them an opportunity for a fresh start and a new chapter. It's an opportunity to leave some of the more unhappy memories behind.”
Prince William has noted that the past year was “brutal” and “the hardest year in my life,” according to NBC News.
Adelaide Cottage, the four-bedroom house in Windsor where the family was living, proved to be too cramped. It lacked space for meetings, overnight guests, and for the children to have friends over, according to NBC News.
The couple will not have any live-in staff at Forest Lodge in order to give them the most privacy possible. Kensington Palace will remain their official home in London, and their offices will remain there. They will also still vacation at Anmer Hall in Norfolk during the holidays and weekends, according to the BBC.
Cottages adjacent to the Forest Lodge estate, previously converted from stables and managed by the Crown Estate, had been rented to private tenants. Two families were reportedly asked to leave so the couple could move in. However, People reported that no eviction notices were given, and the tenants moved to similar or better accommodations within Windsor Great Park.
Close friends described Forest Lodge as the couple’s “forever home,” where they planned to build new memories with their children after three difficult years, according to Mirror and E! Online.
The BBC reported that after the Prince and Princess of Wales become King and Queen of England, they intend to keep the house as their permanent residence.