Every single day of the last two years and two months, the British media has shown their ignorance of American culture, American business, American celebrity and American real estate. It’s fine to not know how things work in other countries, but the British media’s strident efforts to Britsplain American culture has been consistently offensive and idiotic. Anyone could have told them that the California real estate market is always booming, especially in the wealthiest enclaves and the middle-class residential areas of the state. Anyone could have told them that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s purchase of their Montecito mansion was – more than anything – a great investment. But instead, Salt Island screeched about the Sussexes’ 862 bathrooms and contemptuously derided Harry for having a mortgage. Now the Sun admits the obvious: the value of the Sussexes’ home has doubled in value in two years.
Prince Harry and Meghan have earned a staggering £12 million in the past two years – by doing nothing more than staying at home. Their luxury Montecito mansion, which they bought for £11.93 million ($14.6 million) in June 2020, has more than doubled in value in only 23 months.
The 18,671 sq ft home in oceanside Montecito, which boasts nine bedrooms and 19 bathrooms, is now valued at £23,960,720 ($29,350,320) million by property website Redfin – meaning Meghan and Harry would make £12 million if they sold today. Rival website Zillow puts the value of Harry and Meghan’s home at £21.6 million ($26,485,500), but claim it could fetch as much as £30 million ($36.81m)
Sitting on 7.4 acres with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean, their home in the exclusive celebrity enclave boasts a private cinema, gym, spa and wine cellar. It has a pub games room, swimming pool and separate guesthouse where Meghan’s mother Doria stays when she visits from her home in Los Angeles, 90 miles to the south of Montecito.
“Property prices have soared in the past 18 months, and show no sign of stopping,” a local luxury estate agent told The Sun. “Harry and Meghan only had to sit back and watch their home’s value sky-rocket.”
The massive hike in their home’s value, soaring way above the average increase in California’s super-heated housing market, could be contributing to whispers that the royal couple is considering selling up and moving.
What’s funny is that Santa Barbara/Montecito has always been popular with wealthy celebrities, but Harry and Meghan were somewhat ahead of the curve by making Montecito their primary residence and basing themselves well outside of LA. Now more celebrities are doing that, or buying second homes in the Santa Barbara area. Which is why the prices are going up so much (plus just regular old inflation and a crazy real estate market in the state). Anyway, I love all of this and I hope Harry and Meg never move. They seem to love it there. Harry seems to especially love the beach and the local polo club.
Meghan Markle Cheers On Prince Harry at Polo Tournament Near Their California Home https://t.co/817Tbe2Gfe
— People (@people) May 16, 2022
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
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- ** RIGHTS: ONLY UNITED STATES, BRAZIL, CANADA ** London, UNITED KINGDOM – Prince Harry visits the Black Prince Trust in Lambeth. The Duke of Sussex is launching “Made by Sport” a campaign to help disadvantaged young people through sport. Pictured: Prince Harry, Harry Duke of Sussex BACKGRID USA 12 JUNE 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry and Meghan Duchess of Sussex at the Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township, Cape Town, South Africa, where they dance with locals. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Duchess of Sussex BACKGRID USA 23 SEPTEMBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry during a Youth Reception at the British High Commissioner’s Residence in Cape Town, South Africa. Pictured: Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 24 SEPTEMBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry Duke of Sussex and Meghan Duchess of Sussex meet Coastguard trained by Royal Marines at Kalk Bay, Cape Town. Pictured: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex BACKGRID USA 24 SEPTEMBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry Duke of Sussex and Meghan Duchess of Sussex meet Coastguard trained by Royal Marines at Kalk Bay, Cape Town. Pictured: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex BACKGRID USA 24 SEPTEMBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex during a visit to a township to learn about Youth Employment Services (YES), which aims to tackle the critical issue of youth unemployment in South Africa by creating one million new work opportunities in the next three years. Pictured: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex BACKGRID USA 2 OCTOBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: WORLDWIDE EXCEPT IN NETHERLANDS ** Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA – Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex are seen during a visit to a township to learn about Youth Employment Services (YES), which aims to tackle the critical issue of youth unemployment in South Africa by creating one million new work opportunities in the next three years. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 2 OCTOBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- ** RIGHTS: ONLY UNITED STATES, BRAZIL, CANADA ** Windsor, UNITED KINGDOM – BGUK_1763809 – Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, attend a roundtable discussion on gender equality with The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust (QCT) and One Young World at Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, UK. Pictured: Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex,, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex BACKGRID USA 25 OCTOBER 2019 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
I’m glad you mention the ignorance and disrespect the royals and and British press throw towards the US. They just keep shooting themselves in the foot and advertising that ignorance. Harry and Meghan continue to prove how smart they’ve been creating their new life
Which is really messed up given the amount of financial support that Britain and the Royals get (and have gotten for years) by marketing to US folks enthralled by the idea of royalty.
Yeah, just note the way the BM wrote up the first line, that Harry and Meghan earned a staggering amount of money in the past two years by doing nothing more than staying home. Oh really! They write that like the BRF has been out toiling in the salt mines all day.
And completely fucking ignoring the fact that all of us in California have been under strict Covid guidlines, until recently.
Also, and obviously?
They are Harry and Meghan. Of course their home’s value has doubled, and I am certain that is a low ball number.
I can’t even begin to imagine how many people are lining up to buy their home, if they move.
I don’t see them moving from there any time soon. Harry has his polo, they are close enough to LA to go there when they want, but still have good shopping, restaurants, etc where they are, and they have a gorgeous house which seems to have everything that they could want.
that said….LOL to this article. yes, real estate is insane right now, even in my suburban/rural area – I can only imagine what’s happening in california is even more insane.
I know i’m not the only one laughing at the idea of a Sun reporter checking Redfin and Zillow on a regular basis to see how their house is doing, market wise, lol.
I live in a tiny townhome and the value is skyrocketing. I’ve had realtors approaching trying to get me to sell.
Same. I felt a sudden urgency to get a house in 2014/2015 and, because of the CA housing markets, it took a while. We managed to get a place in mid 2016, just before several years of fires hit and destroyed a lot of the starter home inventory. Our place is now almost 2x the value from when we purchased it.
I’m having the same experience in Miami. My townhouse has almost doubled in value and I regularly get calls and letters offering cash for it. The problem, of course, is where would we go? Everything else is also twice as expensive. So I just decided to renovate instead. It’s kind of like having a whole new house, but a lot cheaper than buying a new house anywhere else in the area, and I don’t have to pack everything up.
Tiny, garbage strewn tear-downs on postage stamp properties are going for over a million dollars in Vancouver. It’s everywhere.
Not surprising that they keep tabs on their property values given that we know they’ve been monitoring their grass growth.
I’m not sure Camilla Tominey will ever live that one down. What a clown.
I just read an article in WAPO about how even the rental market is insane in LA. The British tabloid press have no clue.
I live in Santa Barbara and real estate has skyrocketed. When Covid hit and everyone could work remotely, people from NY, SF and LA moved to places like SB. Real estate has always been somewhat expensive but when we moved from Bay Area to SB in 2010 it was a relative bargain here. Now professionals can live anywhere and everything has been snatched up. My neighbors house that they bought for 1.6million 6 years ago is going on the market for 3.7 million next week. Prices have almost doubled in the last 18 months and inventory is almost non existent. I did hear from some Montecito people that H and M were thinking about moving but probably just scuttlebutt. He’s playing polo now at the SB Polo fields just south of Montecito in Carpinteria and I bet that was a big draw for living in SB.
Would be great if they sold before the housing bubble burst. And would be great if the housing bubble would burst soon, because home prices are absolutely ridiculous right now.
It may not “burst”. Prices may plateau with interest rates rising but there’s too much demand and too much equity in currently owned homes that will prevent another foreclosure crisis to drive prices down.
I don’t think it’s based on a bubble, but rather the large about of people who’ve made tons of money that want to live there. CA’s economy had a $3.4 trillion (Trillion!!) gross state product in 2021. If we were a country, our economy would be 5th in the world. It’s kind of crazy how many very, very wealthy people are in CA, spread out between San Francisco, Santa Barbara, LA, Orange County, etc. It’s also a popular place for people with multiple homes.
Now that being said, their property values could suddenly drop if there were a threat to that economy (earthquakes, fallout in media or tech industries, etc).
We also have a tragically imbalanced supply/demand for housing. They can’t build homes fast enough to house the people that want one, so the existing homes get more expensive. I don’t think that will adjust, unless there’s economic fallout that forces people to leave.
Now it’s 19 bathrooms??!! The RR’s obsession with the bathroom count is too amusing. They know how to use Redfin and Zillow so that’s progress, I s’pose, but then extrapolate market value to suggest that Harry and Meghan will sell to reap the property’s appreciation. The Sussexes seem very content in THEIR HOME. They didn’t buy it for the investment, even though it was a very good deal. I don’t see them uprooting Archie and Lili to realize a capital gain on real estate.
Bathroom count is still all over the place but they finally got the distance between LA and Montecito correct! It’s a Daily Fail miracle!
Can we all just appreciate and clap our hands together for Kaiser in this brilliant piece of translation from the BM speak of, “but the British media’s strident efforts to Britsplain American”!!!
Brava Kaiser!!!!! You have done it again!!!! Not on.y with photos but cutting through the BM bullshit!!!
@C-SHELL Now would be a great time to check in on the Lamebridges, and ask for a status update on their campaign to be ‘gifted’ a new family house in Berkshire/Windsor. I’m sure those 19 bathrooms live rent free in Cannot’s head 😂 Do we know the number of kitchens?
How does the Sun know where Doria stays when she visits? And the story about them moving was debunked. This is a non-story but I guess the Sun has to get their clicks somehow.
That was my first thought. How do they know where Doria sleeps? They didn’t even realize Meghan entered and left their own country and yet they think they know where her mother sleeps on another continent? Psh!
Yup! You would think they would be self aware as to their stupidity.
Too late!! 🤦🏻♀️
What I also don’t like is their saying that Doria lives in a particular town, after maligning everything about her daughter Meghan and anyone connected with her. It’s like dropping breadcrumbs for the crazies.
I would be SHOCKED if they sold their house and moved anytime soon. After all the upheaval they’ve been through and the fact they have small children, I see them staying there for a while.
Now they might buy ANOTHER property like a place in New York or maybe the Silicon Valley. But Montecito will probably be home base for a while.
I’m not surprised it’s doubled in value. If it’s ever properly evaluated, I’m sure it’s worth even more because they no doubt invested in updating it to suit their tastes and needs.
What I wouldn’t give for an Architectural Digest tour!!!
Yes yes yes to a tour! I’d gladly pay for that.
I would TOTALLY pay money for a video tour! Tie it to an initiative. I would download it and watch it on repeat!!
AD had a little blurb about Harry last week or the week before – I think they were doing a DM-like examination of one of his “zoom rooms” lol – but I got really excited and thought they were being featured in AD.
To echo the sentiment to non Californians, Montecito has ALWAYS been an enclave to the wealthy and celebrity. Not everyone wants to be in LA or Orange County and it’s a way to be by the beach without being in Malibu. There are decidedly less people. Bottom line: is a quaint small town with no street lights. You “go into town” by going to Santa Barbara. There a great mediation retreat (that used to be a convent) that I used to go to that was destroyed in the mud slides from the Thomas Fire.
PS: I wouldn’t seem them moving any time soon either. A second home in NY possibly, but once Archie is old enough to attend school, I don’t see the likelihood of disrupting his schedule. Harry is gonna put his family first.
Absolutely!! Harry has and will always put his family first. A foreign concept to the rest of his family members.
I live in a very average split level home in New England and mine has doubled and maybe even tripled in value. The market is insane.
We have a 3 bedroom 2 bath ranch style (built in 1994) on a half acre. been here 10 years and our home has quadrupled in value. We also own the adjoining half acre and are constantly harassed by “realtors” (sure Jan) to sell. Some of the offers are unbelievable.
Our county here in Texas has exploded. It’s unreal
Could you find a place to buy if you do sell? It’s a big problem here, huge actually. There is nothing to buy and affordable homes have gone the way of the dinosaur.
OT: With nowhere to live and nothing available to buy affordably, the B.C. government just announced they are going to spend $800 million on a new museum for us. Unflipping believable.
This is our problem. We also refinanced a year ago to a 15 year mortgage with a good interest rate so I’m reluctant to lose that, but in general, we could sell and make a nice profit, even if Zillow is way off on our house (it says its worth almost 200k more than we paid, but based on other houses around here, its def not. But probably 100k more). but even if we sell it and make a nice profit….where are we going to move? I like our school district so dont want to move out of it, and houses are selling in a day or two of hitting the market. I just don’t see how it would work. It must because people are doing it, but even so…..it seems incredibly stressful, lol.
@LadyD…exactly where I’m at! Strata tried to sell the building at the cusp before COVID and FAILED (I told them they would cause I did the research, now I am hated by strata for being right. sigh. Some people are really small). Paid $195,000 (cdn) 15 years ago. My mortgage will be paid off when I’m 77. Just renewed for 3 years; wasn’t even offered a 5 year mtge, let alone a 25 year mtge. They say its worth btwn 485-585 now, but there is NOTHING that could be purchased for that price, so why would I sell my home and not be able to purchase another? That money wouldn’t last long, either, with the cost of rents so again, why?
Strata didn’t do basic upkeep for decades – just repaired what broke, no pro-active maintenance, and now we’re being hit with very expensive special assessments. Still, why would I sell w/no place to go?
Also, what the heck is John Horgan smoking, eh? I wonder who is truly benefitting from this museum being built. who did he promise what to, I do wonder!
@ Lady D, that’s offensive. Canada has the cash for a museum but bupkiss for those looking for affordable housing? That’s quite tone deaf AND insulting to every Canadian.
@LadyD — Victoria resident here, and I am apoplectic at what’s happening with the BC museum. With all the REALLY serious issues here like a devastating lack of affordable rental housing, especially for the homeless, huge shortage of doctors (I recently had a very serious bladder infection, couldn’t get in to see my doctor for 3 weeks so I tried 5 different walk-in clinics, all closed because full to capacity so I had to go to emergency) and a myriad of other problems, they’re spending almost a billion f*ckin bucks on a new museum???? I used to like Horgan but I’m disgusted by this.
But look, they figured out that Montecito isn’t in LA.
LOL I was thinking the exact same thing!!! Finally! They get that Santa Barbara is not “the LA area”
Is the world ending? Two positive stories from the sun back to back about Harry and Meghan? What?!!!
First about Pearl and now their home value.. let me just take a second cause I know this moment won’t last.
They want them back because they miss the income.
Are these British media rodents camped outside Harry and Meghan house 24/7 like stop stalking already. Doria coming and going and where sgd sleeps or doesn’t is none of these people business. Get a life and a clue you freaks.
Also I hope the house prices triple for Harry and Meghan. I love them being RICH.
The Sussex’s prove that they are both smart and have smart people around them advising them on certain matters. I appreciate how they got out of that hateful controlling system and have moved onto the life they have created. They make their own money and do what they want unlike WillSnot and KKKate who are lazy and have to have money doled out to them by papa. My respect only grows for Meghan and Harry.
Lol everyone’s houses and condos in Santa Barbara have almost doubled in value since Covid. It’s because of most of the big tech companies going remote.
Ahh. I just love hearing any positive news about them. Like yassss, keep living your best lives! I hope Harry wakes up every day thinking “yep. Right decision made”.
Isn’t this more the reflection of the insane bubble forming right now.
Even in the literal boonsies things are costing over a half million. We’re talking shacks on rocks.
This “just happened”, too– last year that wasn’t yet the case, cos I look every now and then.
San Joaquin Valley resident here. Even out here in the boonies, CA housing prices are insane. But we’re more vulnerable to downturns in the housing market. Real estate in certain coastal areas, particularly if those areas are home to particular industries, will always retain their value. San Jose/Cupertino/Los Gatos/Palo Alto/San Francisco — Silicon Valley, in other words — will always be ridiculously expensive, and even a downturn in tech won’t hurt the market much. Los Angeles/Beverly Hills/Pasadena/et c. — entertainment central, in other words — will also remain expensive and out of reach for most. Ditto San Diego and other large coastal California cities. But when the downturn hits? (And I believe we’re in for one hell of a downturn, possibly by the end of the year) All of the smaller cities in the interior — Fresno, Modesto, Bakersfield — with no major industries other than agriculture are going to be horribly affected. H & M are very well positioned, real estate-wise.
I think it was Gayle King who said that people would be astonished if they knew how well-connected H & M are. They’re obviously getting excellent advice, and they’re both smart enough to recognize good advice when it’s offered, and to take that advice to heart and act on it. Willnot and Cannot are just too damned arrogant and egotistical to either seek good advice or act on it when it’s offered. Which is why H & M are destined for greatness, and W & K will remain the royal dullards.
That is good info about California real estate. These articles about H&M’s home sound so bitter and jealous. They would love it if their home crashed in value (probably as some sort of justice for…eh, I don’t know), so it probably hurts when they see the home has appreciated in value tremendously in such a short time. I hope H&M are living their best lives in their home, and I don’t see them moving unless it is somewhere even bigger/better.
I personally don’t think there is going to be a crash. Many companies especially tech are going to continue to let people work remote indefinitely. Cheaper real estate areas have benefited from this flexibility and counties like Riverside have gotten lots of LA people and Central Valley getting Bay Area. My daughter in law has a big marketing job with the New York Times and they’re letting her do her job from the big island of Hawaii!
This is hilarious. Why would they move if that is how much their home costs? LOL My house is worth about $600,000 now. House value is crazy in DMV area.
Of course it has! Everything the Sussexes touch turns to shiny gold. Could you imagine the interest and social status that comes with buying and living in the mansion Harry & Meghan once lived in? Keep thriving and the haters will forever be mad!
This makes me so happy for them! Good
Well, it’s nice to know that the bm finally found a map and now know how far away Montesito is from LA–and it only took them 2 years. They do have a problem retaining knowledge though. I believe it’s 16 bathrooms and not 19. Real estate has skyrocketed countrywide, so I don’t know why they’re getting so excited about it. My house has doubled, too. I wonder if they’re going to write about me. I don’t live in the same state has H&M.
Oof. It’s not their fault, they don’t control the market but unless you bought property a while ago or are not hurting for money, you’re screwed right now. I make good money. Really good money. Can’t afford to buy even a modest apartment in a large German city. I would have to work until I’m 90 at least. Or get a husband, which is out of the question. My rental is okay, I’m not complaining. But one reason for this market is that interest rates tanked a long time ago and right now real estate is a good investment. For those who can afford it. So yeah, good for them. But just in general, who needs these massive mansions?
And why are people counting their bathrooms???
Also they’re being deliberately misleading about the bathrooms. They’re not all in the main house but throughout the property in the guest house, pool house, garage etc.
Folks from England can correct me if I’m wrong, but a large chunk of the UK’s housing stock is older, so one bathroom is pretty much the norm, and more than 2 or 3 must be perceived as the height of luxury to the peasants who read these articles.
I live in the Bay Area where home prices are ridiculous and inventory is super low. This is par for the course and prices aren’t going to drop drastically, if at all. The UK tabloids are still obsessed with the Sussexes home. They were like this about Frogmore as well, always going on about the renovation costs. It seems so random and just trying to drum up resentment about the Sussexes having any resources or wealth.
When I saw articles about the Sussexes’s Montecito home it was an incredible find. They found a beautiful oasis outside of LA and you can’t put a price on the peace they have in the US. I,too, would love a fundraiser showing of just one room in their home . Real estate is my adult porn and Zillow and Reddit is part of my fix.
I would pay so much money just to get a peek at a kitchen or their great room!
I’ve been stalking Montecito real estate for a couple of years now. Zillow is my guilty procrastination pleasure.
From what little we’ve seen from their zoom engagements, the house looks so lovely.
(I’d be happy with a Chicken Cam tbh)
Speaking of the guilty pleasures of Zillow, do either of you follow Steven Dennis (@StevenTDennis) on Twitter? He’s a DC reporter but does this fun thing every week called Friday Night Zillow, where he digs up THE most atrocious properties you ever laid eyes on. Completely hilaribad. Dragons in stairwells, random mannequins dressed like beekeepers sat at baby grand pianos… hideous ceilings…dozens of weekly proofs that excess of money does not accompany excess of taste or common sense. FridayNightZillow is the hashtag.
Def a great investment! For what we seen, their home is so beautiful. I would love to see a tour because I’m sure is so chic and well decorated because Meg has great taste.
Housing prices are so sky high and so is the demand. I live in NY and prices are insane. Renting a decent place in the city is like $3200 for a one bedroom. Buying is insane now because a small one bed in my neighborhood cost 750k. The market is insane now.
“Living well is the best revenge.” – George Herbert
It sure is
If H&M’s home has doubled in price, so have the other comparable homes. Unless they’re thinking of making a major change in their lives, moving would just mean they’d have to buy a similar home for twice the price.
Does anybody else think Megan is pregnant? I really do. Am I projecting?! Last time I saw her I swear she had pregnancy face and what she was wearing I don’t know I hate it when people bump watch but I also feel like she’s possibly pregnant lol
I would be thrilled!
I love all the cali-based real estate shows, but I have to ask the US based readers… why are there always so many bathrooms? Am I missing something for why these (utterly gorgeous) million dollar properties need more bathrooms than there are other rooms??
In Canada I could get why it was maybe a bathroom per bedroom and an extra powder room. (And now seems luxurious compared to the U.K. with 1 bathroom for up to 4 bedrooms and rarely space for a powder room)
But 19 bathrooms just objectively feels like a lot of bathrooms to try and use regularly!