£7m place in the sun for Harry & Meghan
Couple splash out on their first house on the American Riviera
PRINCE Harry and Meghan have reportedly bought a multi-millionpound house in California – the first home either has ever owned.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reportedly moved to Santa Barbara six weeks ago with year-old son Archie.
The family’s new celebrity neighbours in the city known as the American Riviera include their friends Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres, as well as Hollywood royalty Tom Cruise, Jennifer Lopez, Steven Spielberg and Whoopi Goldberg.
According to reports in the US, an insider said: “Harry and Meghan have been quietly living in their own home in Santa Barbara since early July.
“They are not house guests of Oprah or anyone else, they bought this home themselves. This is where they want to continue their lives. This is the first home either of them has ever owned.
“It has been a very special time for them as a couple and as a family. They intend to put down their roots in this house and the quiet community,
“This is where they want to bring Archie up, where they hope he can have as normal a life as possible.”
Details of the home, such as the
price they paid or the precise location, were not known.
The couple were previously staying in a £14million Beverly Hills mansion loaned to them by US star Tyler Perry since March. The source added: “Harry and Meghan never intended to make Los Angeles their home.
“They’ve thought about this carefully and researched it well. This is the place where they plan to be happy, make good friends and bring up Archie, giving him the chance to play with other children his age.”
Most properties in Santa Barbara cost between £3million and £15million. High-end Santa Barbara estate agent Cristal Clarke said: “Occasionally a house will sell for over $20million [£15.4 million]. The
They intend to put down roots in this house. This is where they want to bring Archie up INSIDER ON THE DUKE AND DUCHESS OF SUSSEX’S MOVE TO SANTA BARBARA
most popular price bracket is $4million [£3.1 million] to $10million [£7.7million], and buyers pay in excess of $5million [£3.85 million] for a home with a sea view.” Last night questions were being asked as to why the couple have spent millions on their new home when they owe taxpayers £2.4million for renovations to their UK home Frogmore Cottage in Windsor.
One critic said: “How have two unemployed people managed to finance the purchase of a house? If they have cash, as a British taxpayer, I want to know when the money for Frogmore Cottage is being paid back.” And royal expert Ingrid Seward said: “When Meghan and Harry do anything to do with money, it isn’t going to be looked on very favourably.”
The family’s new home city is two hours north of Los Angeles, between the foot of the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific
Ocean, and is known for its Mediterranean climate. The Sussexes were also attracted to the local schools where rich and poor pupils are taught side by side.
Meghan, 39, hopes to have Archie educated in “a diverse and socially integrated pre-school”.
A source said: “She doesn’t want Archie to attend a posh private school and wants it to be as diverse as possible.”
Santa Barbara Junior High has been described as “a campus of contrasts”.
Among the school’s 930 pupils, 200 are from the moneyed area where the royal couple now live while 400 are from disadvantaged backgrounds and receive subsidised lunches.
Huge donations have helped the school repeatedly place in the top 3% for results. Its theatre was renovated after ER star Anthony Edwards, a former pupil, helped raise most of the £2.8million needed in 2001.
When one pupil missed a water polo team bus for a game in LA he took the family’s private jet to make the match.
If the Sussexes prefer a boarding school, Archie could go the £47,700-ayear Midland School in nearby Los
Olivos, where sports include football as well as “English riding and horse care”. Harry is said to be particularly pleased about the move to the area as it allows him to indulge in his love of polo. Their new home is just a few miles from the elite Santa Barbara Polo and Racquet Club, which attracts the world’s best players and teams each summer.
A source said: “Harry would feel right at home as many of those he knows play at Santa Barbara.”
And should he pine for a taste of home he could try British pub the Old Kings Road which serves Boddingtons, Bass and Newcastle Brown Ale.
Ex-actress Meghan could find work opportunities at the annual Santa
Barbara International Film Festival, attended by directors such as Spielberg and Martin Scorsese.
The Sussexes are reported to have a combined wealth of £23million.
Meghan is said to have amassed £3.8million in her acting career while Harry’s £19.2million includes an inheritance from mum Princess Diana and an annual allowance from dad Prince Charles. Since moving to North America, he is known to have been paid around £700,000 to appear at a JP Morgan summit in Miami in February.
Papers for the Sussex Royal Foundation, now in liquidation, showed it was owed £200,000 by an unknown source.
Meghan doesn’t want Archie at a posh private school, she wants it to be diverse
SOURCE TELLS HOW THE COUPLE WANT ARCHIE TO HAVE A NORMAL UPBRINGING