William and Kate ‘won’t want to live at Buckingham Palace’ despite £300million refurbishment

Buckingham Palace has long been an icon of the institution, sitting proudly in the centre of London and drawing in millions of visitors each year from all corners of the globe. The late Queen Elizabeth spent most of her reign living in the London residence, before seeing out her final years in Windsor. But as the next generation of royals take on more of a role, it seems both the King and Queen, and the Prince and Princess of Wales , aren’t as drawn to Buckingham Palace and would prefer to live elsewhere. Charles and Camilla are mostly residing in Clarence House, while William and Kate are carving out their home in Windsor. Over recent years, Buckingham Palace has undergone a huge refurbishment project, to the tune of £369 million of taxpayer money. And according to some royal sources, once the renovations are complete, the Palace will simply become ‘Monarchy HQ’, while the senior royals live elsewhere. Royal expert Richard Eden told the Daily Mail that a source said: “Buckingham Palace will be used for royal events. There will be investitures, receptions and banquets, but the King and Queen won’t sleep there.” Interior designer Nicky Haslam, an old friend of Camilla, told the MailOnline that it would be a grave mistake for the King and Queen not to live at the palace at some point in the future. He said: "Turning Buckingham Palace into an office is wrong. Period." He added: "William won’t use it either. It stops Buckingham Palace being the jewel in the crown... If people think it’s an office they won’t go there." In November last year, the Prince and Princess of Wales moved into their ‘forever home’ of Forest Lodge on the Windsor estate: a short drive from their previous home of Adelaide Cottage and near to Windsor Castle. The Waleses also have at their disposal Anmer Hall, a 10-bedroom property on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, and an apartment in Kensington Palace for official entertaining. In 2025, royal expert Ingrid Seward told HELLO! magazine: "William was never going to move into Buckingham Palace. He has never had any fondness for it, and he probably hasn't spent much time there." "But that was then, and this is now. Maybe Buckingham Palace will open to the public all year round, rather than only in the summer, and they will use Windsor Castle for banquets." In 2025, a YouGov poll revealed that most Brits did not want their taxpayer money to go towards the decade-long refurbishment of the Palace that has been in progress since 2017. 56 percent of respondents said they didn't think the government should be contributing to the expensive refurb project, compared to just 29 percent of people - less than one-third - who believed that taxpayers should be funding the works.