The King and Prince William’s extensive real estate holdings are under intense scrutiny after revelations that the royal family makes millions in profit from renting property to organisations such as charities and health providers.

In addition, residents who rent homes owned by the royal family have accused it of failing to meet basic standards set by the British government, the same investigation uncovered.

The fresh probe from Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, called The King, The Prince and their Secret Millions, found that the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall will make at least £50 million ($98.5 million) from leasing land to public services like such as the National Health Service.

The Duchy of Cornwall, a title held by Prince William, will also make £37 million ($72.89 million) from leasing Dartmoor Prison to the British government, according to Channel 4.

The King made more than £26 million ($51.2 million) in 2023 from his property empire, which is known as the Duchy of Lancaster, that he inherited when Queen Elizabeth II died.

Property empire

The two own more than 5400 leases that are exempt from business taxes, including land, property and assets across England and Wales that are held in a trust.

It includes historic buildings, farmland and areas of natural significance, and Channel 4’s investigation alleges that the royal family is charging the military, the NHS and charities millions to use the land to fund their lifestyle.

The New Daily contacted the Australian Monarchist League for comment. It declined to comment because it is “not an issue that relates to the Crown in Australia and is therefore outside of our mandate”.

The New Daily also contacted the Australian Republic Movement for comment.

Minimum standards

Dame Margaret Hodge, a former head of a committee that scrutinises spending by the British state, said Britons want the monarchy to lead by example in the way it conduct its finances.

“They don’t pay capital gains tax and they don’t pay corporation tax, yet they claim to act commercially,” she said.

“But they can’t have it both ways. If they want to be private and commercial they have to pay the fair rate of tax as everyone else does, otherwise they get a competitive advantage”.

The King and his eldest son pay no tax on earnings made by their estates. Photo: Getty

Energy standards

Other accusations levied against the royals include that they failed to meet minimum energy standards.

The investigation found that roughly 14 per cent of the homes rented out by the two estates had a performance rating of F or G. Since 2020, it has been against the law in Britain for landlords to rent homes that are below an E rating.

A spokesperson for the Duchy of Lancaster denied the claim in a statement to the BBC.

“The Duchy of Lancaster operates as a commercial company, managing a broad range of land and property assets across England and Wales,” the spokesperson said.

“It complies with all relevant UK legislation and regulatory standards applicable to its range of business activities.”

The investigation also found that the Duchy of Cornwall, William’s domain, rents out land to mining companies with problematic environmental track records.

The royal family has had a controversial period following the re-emergence of Prince Andrew’s connections to sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, as well as his ill-fated attempts to explain it away in an interview, and Prince Harry’s split from the family.

After Queen Elizabeth died, both the King and the Princess of Wales have suffered serious cancer scares, although the King and Queen recently completed a visit to Australia.