Prince William is set to sell a fifth of his royal estate over the next decade, redirecting the proceeds into a sweeping programme of affordable housing construction and environmental restoration worth more than $670 million.
According to a report published by The Times on Monday, May 18, the Prince of Wales will divest 20 percent of the Duchy of Cornwall — the private estate he has overseen since his father, King Charles III, ascended the throne in 2022 — and consolidate his remaining landholdings around five strategic “heartlands”: Cornwall, Dartmoor, the Isles of Scilly, the Bath area, and Kennington in South London.
William, 43, has framed the move as a deliberate shift in how he views the estate’s purpose. Speaking through the Duchy’s chief executive, Will Bax, the prince made clear that the centuries-old institution should be measured not merely by the land it holds, but by the good it generates.
Bax stated that William believes the estate “shouldn’t just exist to own land. It should first and foremost exist to have a positive impact on the world.” William added that where no opportunity for meaningful impact exists, there is little reason to retain a presence — a philosophy that underpins the planned disposals.
The investment plan breaks down across several areas. Approximately $215 million is earmarked for housing in the Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, and Kennington, with an ambitious target of delivering between 10,000 and 12,000 new homes by 2040. A further $161 million will be channelled into workplace development and economic regeneration across the five heartland zones.
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On the environmental front, William plans to commit nearly $27 million to ecological recovery schemes, alongside a significantly larger allocation of approximately $360 million directed at wildlife conservation projects.
Currently valued at close to $1.5 billion, the Duchy of Cornwall generates the Prince of Wales nearly $27 million annually. The estate traces its origins to 1337, when it was established by royal charter to provide a sustainable income for the heir apparent.
A New Chapter at Forest Lodge
Separately, The Times report shed light on the Wales family’s domestic arrangements. William and Princess Catherine, along with their three children — Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8 — relocated in October to Forest Lodge, an eight-bedroom Georgian mansion on the Windsor estate that the couple has reportedly designated their “forever home.”
The family pays $411,435 annually in rent for the property, having previously resided at Adelaide Cottage for more than three years.