Prince Harry and Meghan Markle quietly moved to Santa Barbara in July, following their exit from the British royal family.
The couple bought a home and has been living in the seaside community for the last six weeks, according to the New York Post. There are few details about the family’s new home, where they plan to raise their son Archie, but a spokesperson confirmed the move.
“They have settled into the quiet privacy of their community since their arrival and hope that this will be respected for their neighbors, as well as for them as a family,” the representative said.
Real estate sources pointed the Los Angeles Times to a sprawling estate, which sold for $14.65 million in an off-market deal in June. The property, which has a 14,500-square-foot main house, a tennis court and pool, listed last year asking $34 million. The buying entity matches limited liability companies used by the couple in the past.
A source cited by the Post said that it is “the first home either of them has ever owned,” and that “they intend to put down their roots in this house and the quiet community, which has considerable privacy.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex had previously been shopping for homes in Los Angeles’ Brentwood and Beverly Hills neighborhoods. It was also reported that they were staying in an eight-bedroom mansion owned by media mogul Tyler Perry.
The family joins a number of celebrities living in Santa Barbara, including Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres. Winfrey is close with the couple and Markle’s mother.
Prince Harry and Winfrey have been close since working on a documentary series about mental health, according to the publication. [NYP, LAT] — Dennis Lynch