If Prince William doesn’t want to add to the homelessness problem in the U.K., then he better fix the Duchy of Cornwall’s residential rental properties soon. Tenants have complained of poor, incredibly cold, and dreadful living conditions that are enough to drive them out into the streets.
A 15-month investigation by Mirror and Channel 4’s Dispatches into the rental properties that he inherited from King Charles III when he became Prince of Wales revealed 76 homes failed the E Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard to operate legally. There are 50 rated F, 20 rated G, and six with the lowest EPC score of 1/100. A ruling in 2020 banned homes with a below E rating to be rented out sans a valid exemption. Since the new ruling, the Duchy of Cornwall has allegedly received £91m in profits from these homes but none of those money went into their upkeep if these complaints from the tenants are anything to go by.
They have complained of deplorable living conditions, from lack of heating to moldy walls. One said he had to shell out hundreds of pounds monthly on coal and wood just to heat two rooms, especially when it “gets miserably cold” in the winter that “you can see through the roof.” He said there is mold on clothes and soft furnishings from the cold and damp air.
To make my property efficient it needs to be insulated but they won’t do that because of the cost. But you don’t want to say anything against your landlord for fear of eviction. There could be consequences.
Meanwhile, a visit to an elderly’s home in September found him under a blanket due to there being no central heating and just one fireplace in his house. A third tenant likewise shared that her home “is freezing.”
We were told that it is uninhabitable. When the wind blows the curtains start swinging. There’s no heating upstairs at all. I asked about double glazing and they said Prince Charles doesn’t like it. Well he doesn’t have to live here.
A fourth said “it is a struggle” to live in a cold house but has to adapt for fear of becoming homeless saying: “…But there is nowhere else to live here. They are not good landlords.” Photos of some of the homes show black molds on walls and ceilings and some walls were allegedly wet to the touch.
Claire Williams, 53, said she too had to live with damp and cold when she moved into the property over two decades ago. She spoke of molds that just continue to grow even when applied with mold sealer and that wallpapers and paint just peel off after two months because of the damp walls.
I have to heat the house where all the heat is going out windows. I have to pay an awful lot for oil. It is just so expensive when you know you are paying all this money into a property and it’s heating outside.
Williams was evicted last week over what she said are disputable rent arrears, arguing that she only found out about the F EPC rating when she received her eviction notice. She said she phoned Citizens Advice and was told that she shouldn’t have been paying to live there.
I think the Duchy are saying that I’ve lived here too long. You can live in conditions that are dreadful because I have lived here too long. They don’t seem to have any consideration for the people that have lived in their houses for a length of time. They try to save money on people’s lives to gain money for themselves.
Inspectors from Mid-Devon Council reportedly served the Duchy of Cornwall with a “hazards awareness notice” and found “damp and mold growth” and “excess cold” throughout Williams’ home. Jonathan Bean, a spokesperson for Fuel Poverty Action, branded the Duchy of Cornwall estate a “disgrace” and slammed King Charles III and Prince William for renting out homes that fail to meet even basic standards. He said tenants are “forced to suffer in silence” about their grim living conditions over fears of “being evicted or subjected to rent increases.”
This royal mess demonstrates the fundamental power imbalance at the heart of this country’s broken housing system. Tenants may have rights in law, but in reality they are at the mercy of their landlords.
Meanwhile, a Duchy of Cornwall representative argued: “We are a responsible Landlord committed to continuous improvement of its properties. We work closely with our tenants to actively address energy efficiency of properties across our portfolio while minimizing the impact on residents… Prince William became Duke of Cornwall in September 2022 and since then has committed to an expansive transformation of the Duchy.”
The result of the investigation comes following the release of the ITV documentary Prince William: We Can End Homelessness, which sheds light on the royal’s five-year plan to end homelessness in the U.K. through The Royal Foundation’s Homewards program. But as per one tenant, it’s just a “slick PR” that “will stick in the throat of many tenants” and suggested that the Prince of Wales “should start by bringing the homes he already owns up to modern standards.”