Royal Lodge, the 30-room mansion in Windsor, is struggling to attract a new occupant after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was forced out, with no members of the Royal Family reportedly interested in taking on the property and its estimated £400,000-a-year upkeep.
The Crown Estate, which holds the historic building in trust for the nation, is hunting a wealthy individual to move in, but the property's association with Andrew and his past guests has made it a difficult sell.
No royal interest in vacant mansion
It is claimed no members of the Royal Family are interested in taking on the vacant property. Another sticking point is that Andrew officially still owns the lease of Royal Lodge until the end of October, which means no renovations can take place until then.
Buildings are often forever tied to famous former occupants - like Elvis's Graceland, The Dakota in New York for John Lennon or Winston Churchill's Chartwell. Ask anyone what they know of Royal Lodge and they'll probably say: "That's Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's old pad."
Infamous visitors cast a shadow
The major issue is this: who wants to say they are living in Andrew's old house where he entertained sex perverts Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein?
In October last year it was finally revealed that back in 2006 the trio of Weinstein, Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell all visited Royal Lodge when attending Princess Beatrice's masked ball 18th birthday party. It is understood they visited Royal Lodge ahead of the main party, which took place in the state rooms of Windsor Castle and involved a champagne reception and banquet.
The BBC analysed images taken of the three - Weinstein in a dinner jacket, Epstein in a fake US Royal Navy SEAL commander's white dress suit and Maxwell in a dress and feathered face mask - to discover it was taken on the Royal Lodge grounds.
Hard sell after scandal
Weinstein, 74, is currently in Rikers Island prison after being convicted of rape; the now deceased Epstein was convicted in 2008 for procuring a 14-year-old schoolgirl for prostitution and Maxwell is also in jail for child sex trafficking.
Andrew took on the lease of Royal Lodge in 2003, paying £8 million, which covered the rent for its 75-year duration. But he and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson both quit earlier this year after further revelations in the Epstein Files shone a spotlight on their friendship with the pervert - a relationship they both maintained even after the pervert was jailed.
Both Andrew and Ferguson have apologised for their friendship with Epstein and both strenuously deny any wrongdoing on their part. Yet none of that helps the Crown Estate get someone to put pen to paper on a new long-term lease.
