The Dutch state provides three palaces for the Dutch monarch and rents him castle 't Loo (also known as the old Loo).
When the Rijksgebouwendienst acquired Noordeinde 66 from WA they did so after he had renovated and restored a building that had not seen much upkeep being done to it from the late 19th century so that must have been expensive. It was the Rijksgebouwendienst who decided to add the house to the Noordeinde Palace complex. As part of one of the three residence attributed to the monarch by the Dutch state the king offered this part of his official residence to his mother as her office and pied-a-terrre in The Hague. Compared to other monarchies the Dutch state had a small bill to pay. Yes they paid 3 million for the house but that was the commercial price at the time so that is what that building is actually worth.
They spent a million on alterations and making it fit for Beatrix compare that to the upkeep of the Belvedere in Belgium or the castle Grand Duke Jean lives in or the upkeep of the residences of other monarchies and you see it's not a high price to pay.
Beatrix as queen inquired if the Dutch state would be willing to provide her heir with a fitting residence and was bluntly told no by the government of the day. I doubt emotions have changed on that subject.
Perhaps it would be easier if the dutch State would also provide a residence for the Heir. When did they stop to do this. Juliana had one and BEatrix then had a privated owned home. In all other monarchies except for Norway the Heir to the Throne got a state owned residence.
As for the siblings of the Duchgess of Brabant i can imagine that they can use on g´the buildings owned by the Royal foundation but they have to pay rent when they live there and don't do offical duties which they will not as it looks now. Isn't Stuyvenbverg Castle now rented out?.
Well, that is where we differ of opinion!
Those trust funds were not set up by the Duch guilders Juliana or later Beatrix set aside from their income as a heiress. The O-N family has been known and is still known for the way they provide for themselves, just to put it nicely
Those same Trust Funds BTW caused much upheaval in recent years when their postal address turned out to be Noordeinde Palace as well as various lucrative Tax Heavens elsewhere were used to escape any Dutch tax for Queen Beatrix' sisters ....
So, implying both Juliana and Beatrix provided for their extended family solely based upon the income they received from 18 years on definitely underlines the fact that the young heiresses' income should be under even closer scrutiny, especially as it is tax payers money.
Surely you don't suggest tax payers are also -indirectly - paying for the upkeep of Princesses Irene, Margriet and Christina (and their off-spring)
Now, since you mentioned Noordeinde 66 .... am sure & fully aware of your involvement in such matters as royal housing & history, you do realise that N'66 is a tricky subject don't you?
Bought by WA from his maternal grandmother (Juliana) for a staggering amount (seen his age at that time) then it was renovated but later on left to its own after WA married Maxima and they took over (ans renovated) 'De Eikenhorst' which had been 'frozen in time' since his aunt Christina left it after her divorce from Jorge Guillermo.
Yes, the Eikenhorst is on private grounds, so that was very helpful in a region known for its sky high real estate prices!
But Noordeinde 66 actually was part of Noordeinde Palace, and used by Prince Hendrik back in those days & even has direct access to the Palace, so not a normal property in the centre of the royal residence.
Noordeinde 66 was sold by WA for an extremely profitale amount to the State Housing Agency (Rijksgebouwendienst) who in its turn provided Queen Beatrix after her abdication with a handsome 'pied a terre' right next to Palace Noordeinde and all renovations were paid for by the State Housing Agency. Indeed, all according to the law that says that housing should be provided for both the reigning King or his/her predecessor.
But in plain Dutch one might label this hand-over a 'broekzak-vestzak' construction
Last but not least, since Drakensteyn is Queen Beatrix' private property (has been since the late 1950's) it certainly needed an upgrade after so many years.
But when looking at everything that has been going on in terms of real estate and the Dutch royals, I am sure there are many raised/frowned eyebrows and ears scratched as, again, it's the Dutch tax payer who is paying the bill.
Notwithstanding how often the dominating political parties (CDA/VVD) like to defend the RF there is growing concern about the spendthrift of the O-N family and if they like to maintain their popularity the stories about huge incomes and buying real estate in all sorts of places is not in the best of interest for the family !
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