King Charles III Won’t Live At Buckingham Palace After 10-Year Refurbishment Ends Next Year

King Charles III will not live at Buckingham Palace after its 10-year refurbishment program finishes next year, royal officials said on Thursday, and the king and Queen Camilla will instead continue to live at Clarence House.

“King Charles III and Queen Camilla will not move into Buckingham Palace once its refurbishment has finished, the palace said in a press release Thursday”

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James Chalmers, the king's treasurer and keeper of the privy purse, said Buckingham Palace would remain the primary venue for ceremonial and official functions, including receiving foreign dignitaries, telling reporters, "It is and will remain monarchy HQ, the crown jewel our national buildings,".

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The refurbishment work started in 2017 and is expected to conclude next year, with the total cost projected at 369 million pounds (€428.2 million, $486.7 million), and the project includes replacing aging electrical wiring, pipes and heating.

The palace is currently undergoing a major renovation, and officials said there will be greater public access without providing details, while the building has been the British monarch's primary London residence since Queen Victoria became sovereign in 1837.

In parallel with the housing decision, Charles released to the public the details of his personal taxes paid to the government, with officials disclosing the king paid 12.9 million pounds in tax in 2024/25.

A palace spokesperson told the Sun that Buckingham Palace will remain a working home while the royals seek to widen public access, saying, "It will remain a working home but we are seeking to widen public access precisely to maximize the national benefit of a publicly funded building,".

Privy Purse James Chalmers told the Sun that "Their Majesties will, however, have access to private rooms within the Palace where they can retire during the course of a working day,".

BBC

The BBC said the King and Queen will not live at Buckingham Palace when £369m of refurbishments are completed next year, and that the palace will continue as the administrative headquarters of the monarchy.

The BBC reported that the decision was taken to allow greater public access to the landmark, and that the King will continue to host a range of events at the palace from state banquets and garden parties to receptions and audiences with the prime minister and new ambassadors.

The BBC also said the King and Queen would "have access to private rooms within the palace where they can retire during the course of a working day" and that Buckingham Palace would continue to be both the ceremonial and operational centre of royal life.

The announcements about where Charles and Camilla will live came as the royal family faced months of embarrassing headlines about the links between the former Prince Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“The image has circled the world this weekend”

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The Los Angeles Times said Charles became the first British monarch to reveal the taxes he paid to the government, and it reported that the king paid $16.1 million in income and capital gains taxes in the 2024-25 financial year, up from almost $15.5 million the previous year.

In the same Reuters account carried by NewsNation, officials said Charles decided to continue living at Clarence House when the £369 million refurbishment of Buckingham Palace concludes next year, and James Chalmers said it would remain the primary venue for ceremonial and official functions.

NewsNation also reported that Chalmers said the Sovereign Grant would be cut for the first time in 2027/28 to £100 million "in line with his majesty’s clear wishes," and that it would stay until 2031/32.

The BBC further reported that as the refurbishments come to an end, the overall level of the grant will fall from £137.9m to £99.9m in 2027-28, and it said the uplift will help pay for a backlog in maintenance at occupied royal palaces and for the installation of energy efficient heating systems.