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Meghan Markle, Prince Harry purchase $14.7 million Montecito compound

3 years 7 months 2 weeks ago Thursday, August 13 2020 Aug 13, 2020 August 13, 2020 6:34 AM August 13, 2020 in News
Source: Variety
Photo of home: MOTOVO Photo of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry: LA Times

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, California - For most couples, a starter home is an exciting yet modest purchase.

But Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, fresh off their split from the royal family in England and subsequent move to America, are not like most couples.

According to Variety, the two have purchased a California starter house worth $14.65 million in Montecito, a seaside Santa Barbara County enclave.

The royals will be neighbors to a number of Hollywood's stars, including Ellen DeGeneres, Oprah, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Ariana Grande.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’ names are not on grant deeds related to the property — records show the estate quietly sold in mid-June to a trust with a deliberately opaque name, though the trust happens to share a mailing address with the offices of Meghan Markle’s longtime Hollywood business manager.

Public documents also reveal the buyers secured a $9.5 million mortgage to acquire the 7.4-acre compound, which is safely tucked away on a private, gated street.

Despite the hefty pricetag, Meghan and Harry actually scored the property at a discount of sorts — the seller, low-profile Russian businessman Sergey Grishin, acquired the estate in 2009 for $25.3 million and repeatedly tried to sell it over the past decade before finally accepting a $10 million-plus financial loss.

Built in 2003, the Mediterranean-style main house features beige and off-white decor, a library, gym, separate wet and dry saunas, an elevator, arcade, game room and home theater.

There’s also a detached guesthouse with two bedrooms and bathrooms; altogether, the estate boasts nearly 19,000 square feet of living space with a total of 9 bedrooms and a whopping 16 bathrooms.

Meghan and Harry, who first moved stateside in early 2020, previously resided in a fortified compound owned by Tyler Perry, whom they met through mutual friend, and now neighbor, Oprah Winfrey.

In January, Meghan and Harry officially announced their plan to step back from their roles as senior royals in a post on their now-defunct @SussexRoyal Instagram account.

They first moved to Vancouver, Canada in January and then in March, relocated to California. 

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