Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson have splashed out on a Swiss ski chalet thought to be worth up to £13 million ($25 million).
The Duke and Duchess of York bought the seven-bedroom property in upmarket Verbier shortly before Christmas as a "family investment". The deeds list them simply as Andrew York and Sarah Ferguson.
The divorced couple were staying there last week when claims that the prince had sex with an under-age girl were made in documents lodged at a US court. Sources in Switzerland say the chalet is worth between £10m and £13m.
A source close to the duchess told the Daily Mail that she and Andrew took out a joint mortgage on the property and did not buy it outright. The development shows how close the pair are even though they separated in 1992 after six years of marriage and divorced four years later.
But it also raises questions as to how they can afford the chalet, which has up to six permanent staff, including a chef. Andrew is not known to have a vast private fortune, and Sarah only recently managed to clear £5m in debts she ran up through a series of disastrous business investments.
