Harry and Meghan’s $14M Montecito Home Faces Fresh Wildfire Risk as Couple Lives in UK

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have left California for the UK, but their $14 million-plus Montecito home remains part of the couple’s life in the US. The Sussexes arrived in Britain with their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, in late Aug after reports confirmed plans to relocate from California.

The move comes as Montecito continues preparing for wildfire threats, with local authorities increasing firefighting resources and urging residents to get their properties ready for the possibility of a blaze.

The couple hasn’t announced any plans to sell the California property, so the estate stays in Montecito even while the family lives across the Atlantic.

Montecito Is Ramping Up Wildfire Prep

There’s no indication a wildfire is currently threatening Harry and Meghan’s property the concern is that Montecito, as a community, takes fire season seriously every year.

On Sept. 2, the Montecito Fire Department announced a partnership with the Montecito Water District aimed at boosting firefighting resources during high fire-danger periods.

The department has also been running its usual seasonal prep work, including property inspections and guidance on building defensible space, which local law requires to extend 100 feet around structures.

Those steps are meant to cut down on the vegetation and debris that can help flames spread toward a home. None of this is specific to the Sussexes; it’s the same standard the fire department applies community-wide.

The department’s guidance also points out that homes can catch fire from flying embers even without flames nearby, which is why it recommends clearing dead vegetation and keeping roofs and gutters free of combustible material.

Home hardening measures designed to keep embers from getting into vulnerable parts of a structure are another piece of what officials are pushing this year. None of this means Harry and Meghan’s home has been flagged as being at elevated risk; it’s simply the baseline expectation for anyone living in the area.

Fire conditions can shift fast, but the preparedness work itself runs on a steady annual cycle regardless of what’s burning at a given moment.

The Home Has Been Through This Before

This isn’t the first time the Montecito property has come up during a fire scare. Back in Jan. 2025, as the Palisades Fire tore through parts of Los Angeles, reports suggested Harry and Meghan could face evacuation concerns tied to the broader regional danger.

Their home wasn’t reported as damaged, and it was described as sitting outside the immediate evacuation zones at the time the couple even opened it up to friends who had been displaced.

The Sussexes bought the property in 2020, shortly after stepping back from royal duties, with ABC News putting the price at roughly $14.7 million for the Mediterranean-style estate on several acres.

It’s functioned as their main US base ever since, even as their day-to-day life has shifted overseas.

They’re Not Giving Up the Property

Despite the relocation, there’s no sign Harry and Meghan are letting go of Montecito. TMZ reported in August that the couple intends to keep the home and has no plans to sell, according to people familiar with the situation, while also suggesting the UK move could end up being temporary.

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