King Charles could face massive $700,000 bill if he forces Prince Andrew out of the Royal Lodge

King Charles III could be facing a massive bill of nearly $700,000 a year if he forces Prince Andrew to move into Frogmore Cottage.

The Duke of York has been living at the much larger Royal Lodge, also on the Windsor estate, since 2003 but is facing an eviction.

Buckingham Palace and the monarch are said to be keen on moving Prince Andrew out to potentially free up the Royal Lodge for the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children in the future.

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It follows Prince Harry and Meghan being asked to vacate Frogmore Cottage earlier this year, which had been their base while in the UK.

Andrew is said to be resisting the move from the Royal Lodge into Frogmore Cottage, with one of the main reasons being his 75-year-lease on the Grade II listed mansion.

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According to a recent piece from the Daily Mail, the Crown Estate would have to reimburse Andrew if they terminated his 75-year lease early.

It's also been claimed King Charles would then face a bill of £360,000 (around $680,000 AUD) in annual payments if Andrew moves to Frogmore Cottage.

Andrew's name being is on the lease with the Crown Estate and not the royal family's, which an associate of the duke's says makes him think he's safe from being booted out.

The associate, who is in regular contact with the duke, told The Times that the Royal Lodge can't be simply taken away from him.

"The lease is in the duke's name so no one can take that away from him," the source told The Times.

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"It has never been suggested that it could be taken away from him.

"This is a lease between him and the Crown Estate," the source added.

"That's not a matter for the King. It's a matter for the chancellor of the exchequer. The only way you could get him to move out would be through an arrangement – he would have to agree."

But author and journalist Tom Bower, who has written biographies about the King and Prince Harry, doesn't think Andrew's name on the lease will offer much protection.

"What the King is saying is he won't pay for the maintenance," Bower said.

"All crown leases have termination clauses, for example if you're not paying for upkeep in a way they think desirable. So I would think the lease won't protect him forever. They can always say the paintwork isn't good enough. That's how he can be winkled out.

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"But the lease on Royal Lodge must be worth quite a lot. He has a strong case to say, 'You've got to buy me out'."

Prince Andrew is understood to be unable to afford the upkeep on the Royal Lodge, which is estimated at £1 million ($1.8 million AUD) for the house and land, without taking staffing costs into consideration.

In April, his annual allowance of £249,000 ($470,000 AUD) was said to have been cut off by the King, money he had been relying upon since stepping back from royal duties in November 2019.

He also receives a £20,000 ($37,000 AUD) pension from the Royal Navy.

The late Queen's legacy for her youngest son remains unknown.

In March 2022 Andrew paid an undisclosed sum, believed to be about £3m ($6 million AUD), to Virginia Giuffre, who accused him of having sex with her after Epstein trafficked her.

Andrew has always denied the allegations against him.

He sold a ski chalet in Verbier, Switzerland, in December for a reported £19 million ($36 million AUD), with much of that money believed to have been repaying a debt to its previous owner.

While a large portion was also used to fund his settlement with Giuffre, however the late Queen is said to have contributed to that along with her son's hefty legal bills.