Thursday 4 August 2022 08:19 PM Fergie buys £5M Mayfair home a short walk from Ghislaine Maxwell's house trends now

The Duchess of York has bought a £5M Mayfair home 'made up of two flats knocked together' only a short walk from Ghislaine Maxwell's mews house where Prince Andrew was pictured with his arm around the waist of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, MailOnline revealed today. 

Sarah Ferguson, 62, is moving into one of London's most exclusive streets — popular with The Beatles in the 1960s and also Rihanna when she comes to the UK — despite previously describing herself as being 'continually on the verge of financial bankruptcy' and having 'little understanding' of money. 

She has been seen in Mayfair viewing the Mews property which is on a cobbled street and a stone's throw from the Horse and Groom which opened in the 17th century.

A neighbour who lives a few doors away from Fergie's corner house said: 'The builders have been in for ages and it has been empty. Two flats have been knocked together to make a house.

'I didn't know she had bought that property. I'm a bit surprised that she has bought it right next to the garage. Because there are cars coming in and out all the time.

'But I suppose the property values have just gone up with royalty here — unless Andrew moves in of course!'

Fergie will be welcomed to the area by the local landlord — who has offered her the first drink on the house.

'This is a pub which is very popular with the residents of this street,' publican Afrim Neli said. 'I will welcome her and offer her a free drink.

'The Beatles would come in as their manager Brian Epstein lived here and Rhianna comes in when she is in London. So we are used to famous faces.'

Fergie is said to have splashed out £5 million on the corner property which was owned by a developer who has moved to Nottingham.

A local housekeeper said: 'About two months ago I saw her coming out of the house. She seemed in a hurry and got into a car.

'I didn't really look too closely as we are used to famous people around here.'

A man parking his car in the garage said: 'The spaces normally cost about £3,000 a year. I believe there was one space available too. Maybe she'll get that.'

MailOnline revealed today that her bijou terrace is just a third of a mile from Maxwell's former home in central London, where she is alleged to have groomed young girls. 

It is also where her friend the Duke of York allegedly had sex with Ms Giuffre, then 17 — an allegation in the civil claim the royal paid her around £12million to settle in the US. 

He did not accept any liability when he made the settlement and vehemently denies the claims. 

Ms Maxwell sold her mews to a developer for £1.75million last year to help towards her legal bills before she was jailed for 20 years in New York for grooming children for her paedophile boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein, who trafficked Virginia and other girls around the world on his private jets — treating them as sex slaves.

Fergie is said to have purchased her new home from her friend the Duke of Westminster, 31, who became one of Britain's wealthiest people when he inherited his father's £10billion fortune and the Grosvenor property empire in 2016. He is also a close friend of Prince William and Prince Harry.

The £5million house is said to be viewed as an investment opportunity for her daughters Beatrice and Eugenie — but for now it is Fergie's only home in London amid questions about where she could have found the cash. 

Her multi-million pound purchase came despite her repeated complaints of financial difficulties in recent years, describing herself as 'continually on the verge of financial bankruptcy' in a 2010 TV interview in the US. She also admitted to having 'little understanding' of money and there were reports she had run up as much as £4.2million in debt during her marriage to Andrew.

She received £3million from their divorce and most of her income is now likely to come from her books.  Her first bodice-ripper crept onto the bestseller charts last year — despite critics branding it a 'slog' with no sex. Critics branded the book 'boring' but it initially sold 1,000 copies a week when it was released.

People on the street said the Duchess had been spotted viewing the house in the late spring — and seen running into a waiting vehicle. They admitted they were happy to have yet another famous neighbour — as long as her ex-husband stays away.

The mews was once two flats now converted back to a house and formed part of the giant Grosvenor Estates portfolio, but has now been transferred to the Duchess, who spends most of her time living with her ex-husband at his grace-and-favour home — the Royal Lodge in Windsor.