More than 100 homes on the inherited royal estates of King Charles and Prince William fail to meet the legal minimum energy standards for landlords, the Guardian can reveal. An analysis of a large sample of domestic lets on the duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall and the Sandringham estate found that one in five have Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings of F or G.
EPCs provide an energy efficiency score for properties, introduced in England and Wales in 2007 to estimate energy bills and environmental impact. The most efficient properties are rated A, the worst G. Since 2020, it has been illegal to rent out properties with EPC ratings below E unless the landlord can demonstrate exemption. In the majority of failing royal rentals, no formal exemption has been cited.
Gaps in Regulations and Dickensian Conditions
In some cases, the royal estates appear to be using gaps in regulations to continue letting properties out. This includes homes of dozens of farmers living in poorly insulated farmhouses leased from the two duchies. Some farmhouses are not subject to current regulations depending on the tenancy type. Other homes rented out by the royals are not covered by the rules, which apply only to tenancies beginning after October 2008. These older tenancies often house elderly and vulnerable people with health conditions, some living without central heating and reliant on coal fires or expensive electric heaters.
The Guardian visited several of the worst F and G-rated duchy properties and found many affected by black mould and draughty single-glazed windows. The pressure group Fuel Poverty Action described conditions in some properties as “Dickensian” and accused the royals of “putting profits above the health and welfare of their tenants”.
Financial Scale and Regulatory Compliance
The duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, exempt from most business taxes, have paid out more than £400m to the king and his family since 2018, when the minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) regulations came into force. Landlords must spend up to £3,500 per property to bring them up to standard or cite exemptions, with fines up to £5,000 for non-compliance. Fewer than one in 12 of the F and G-rated properties on the royal estates had registered exemptions: the duchy of Lancaster had eight, the duchy of Cornwall four, and Sandringham five. The most common exemption, used in nine properties, is that consent to improve the property “has been refused, or given conditions that cannot reasonably be met”. In four others, “wall insulation is not appropriate for the property”. In three properties, improvements would exceed the £3,500 cap; none have central heating or full double glazing, relying on electric heaters rated “very poor” and solid-fuel fires.
The estates do not publish lists of land holdings, making comprehensive analysis difficult. The Guardian examined EPCs of more than 700 domestic properties owned by the three estates on the Land Registry, excluding holiday lets and leasehold titles. Of 143 properties rated F or G, it is unclear how many are unoccupied, but the Guardian spoke to tenants in a significant number.
Duchy of Lancaster: Challenges and Investments
The duchy of Lancaster, established in 1265, is the only royal estate to publish details of MEES compliance. It has more than 300 rental properties on its 18,000-hectare estate, with most domestic lets in the north-west and Midlands. Its annual report states: “The duchy continues to invest in improving energy efficiency across its rental properties, with 97% of the let properties for which minimum energy efficiency standards are applicable being rated A+ to E.” It adds: “Making improvements can often be challenging due to the listed or historical status of some of our buildings; of the 10 properties that are rated F and G (12 in 2025), seven meet the criteria for registered exemptions and three have ongoing works to improve the EPCs.” However, of more than 200 duchy of Lancaster properties identified, nearly 40 have domestic EPC ratings of F or G. About half are farmhouses, potentially exempt from MEES; 15 were rated F and six G, including two with the lowest possible score of one point.
The duchy’s own lawyers, Farrer & Co, have argued landowners should do more. Elizabeth Earle, Farrer’s “knowledge lawyer” for rural property, wrote: “Farmhouses are not referred to in the MEES regulations and this causes a problem. Although it might be tempting to try and exploit what may look like a loophole now, the more prudent position is to treat farmhouses as though they must comply with MEES. Doing so will be consistent with the overall intention of public policy and less likely to create a problem for the future.”
One duchy of Lancaster tenant farmer said: “When I’m at the post office and they see my council tax, they think: you must live in a nice house. But I wouldn’t live here unless I had to. We have no central heating and almost no double glazing. Our only heating is from coal fires. It’s very cold in the winter and very hot in the summer. When they came to do the EPC, the man said we were one of the worst he had ever done. They would need to spend a lot of money on this place but the duchy told us we are exempt. It doesn’t seem fair that we don’t get anything.”
Older Tenancies and Tenant Fears
EPCs, introduced in 2007, initially applied only to homes with more than four bedrooms, extended to rental properties in 2008. Regulations do not apply to tenancies starting before that point; an EPC is only required on a change of tenant or sale. In such cases, an EPC without a change of tenant is considered “voluntary” and does not trigger regulations. The Guardian found a terrace of duchy of Lancaster cottages in Cheshire with several rated F and G. A local parish councillor said: “The tenants are all elderly and have been there for many decades. They complain about the duchy. They don’t like to spend any money on repairs. Because they have been there so long they have low rents compared to the market locally. If they complain too much they are reminded that the duchy can put up their rent. They are terrified of that and keep quiet.”
Another cottage, rated G and sold by the duchy, had been home to a man in his 90s. The new owner said: “Poor man, he lived there for more than 60 years and barely moved for the last 20. The conditions were appalling. I wouldn’t let my dog stay in there, let alone a 90-year-old.” Another tenant, living in a property rated F, said: “They do no repairs. My windows are so rotten I am scared they will fall out. I can’t believe how bad it is, it really gets me down. I do complain but nothing ever gets done. I need to step away from it. Hearing how much money they have makes me sick. People are scared to take them on.”
The duchy of Lancaster said it placed “great importance” on being a responsible landlord, adding: “Any tenant with concerns is encouraged to contact us directly and can be assured we will address these issues promptly and constructively. Over the last year, the duchy of Lancaster has invested more than £3m in residential property repairs and upgrades as part of our ongoing commitment to provide well-maintained homes compliant with all legislation. Whilst improving the energy efficiency of some historic buildings is challenging, we continue to work to improve their EPC ratings.”
Sandringham and Duchy of Cornwall
King Charles inherited the duchy of Lancaster and Sandringham after his mother’s death in 2022; assets transferred between monarchs are exempt from inheritance tax. On Sandringham, 18 of nearly 170 properties with EPCs were rated F or G. A spokesperson said Sandringham “has a mixture of property and tenancy types, which are fully compliant with MEES regulations”, adding: “We continue to invest significantly in an ongoing programme of maintenance and improvement works on all properties, including those out of scope of the regulations, to upgrade energy efficiency across the estate. While we do not comment on individual cases, these regulations do not apply to every property on the estate and exemptions are necessary on a small number of properties.”
The duchy of Cornwall, founded in 1337, is now under Prince William’s control. It recently announced plans to sell 20% of its property in the next 10 years and invest £500m in local communities, with an additional £50m planned for improving existing properties. The Guardian found the estate owned about 340 domestic properties with EPCs, more than 80 rated F or G on their most recent assessments, including over 20 farms and numerous properties with longstanding tenants where EPCs were done “voluntarily”. In some cases, rules appear not to have been followed: one tenant, who did not want to be identified, moved in after the rules came into force, but her property was never advertised on the open market, and no EPC was done at the time; a subsequent EPC gave it an F, with no exemption registered. She said: “It can be cold. We are in the middle of nowhere. We have oil central heating but we don’t like to use it because it is so expensive. We use the log burners but they are hard work. We are both pensioners. The duchy doesn’t like to spend money on these properties but the rent is expensive and goes up every couple of years.”
The duchy of Cornwall said it had a “unique portfolio, including many historic buildings located in isolated rural and island locations”, adding: “Whilst this confers a special character, it also brings some unique challenges which we have started to address systematically through our retrofit programme. We recognise that these challenges mean work does not always happen as fast as we would like, but we will continue to work closely with our tenants to identify effective and practical energy efficiency improvements as quickly as possible.” It added that it had spent £11m on home improvements since 2022 and delivered 150 “modern, energy-efficient homes, all of which are EPC A or B”, but confirmed only six were duchy private rents, with most sold.
Jonathan Bean, of Fuel Poverty Action, said: “Vulnerable people are suffering in Dickensian conditions while the royals enjoy vast profits from the duchies. Using loopholes instead of making these homes safe is immoral and negligent, especially given the age and vulnerabilities of many of the tenants. Mould and damp can seriously damage their health and potentially be fatal. Forcing elderly residents with health conditions to rely on coal burners for heating endangers their health and damages the environment. Wealthy royal estates are putting profits above the health and welfare of their tenants.”
