Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made high-maintenance request to Montecito neighbors, according to royal insider

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a lofty request to their Montecito neighbors after they moved into the Santa Barbara mansion, according to a royal source.  

• Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's team asked the couple's neighbors for a massive favor on behalf of their royal clients, according to an inside source.
• The Duke and Duchess of Sussex apparently wanted to use the tennis court at their neighbors' home ‒ but didn't want any company while they were on the premises.  
• In other royal news, why Meghan Markle would never send Archie and Lilibet to school in the UK.
  

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle reportedly asked their neighbors in Montecito for a lofty favor ‒ only to allegedly be rejected after the royal couple's staff went a little overboard with their demands. 

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex purchased a $14 million Santa Barbara mansion shortly after their withdrawal from the Royal Family in early 2020, and have spent the last two years raising their children, Archie, 3, and one-year-old Lilibet, at the sprawling Californian estate. 

It's understood that the A-list family's house boasts nine bedrooms and 16 bathrooms, making it significantly larger than their newlyweds abode of Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. It also has plenty of outdoor luxuries, including a swimming pool, tiered rose gardens, and a teahouse. 

It has now been reported that Meghan and Harry had an awkward moment with a fellow Montecito local, however, after a Sussex spokesperson apparently asked one of their neighbors if the celebrity couple could play on their tennis court. 

Speaking on the Royal Beat, historian Hugo Vickers claimed that an inside source in the US had informed him of the alleged incident. 

"[The Sussexes] didn’t have a tennis court and so they asked, or their team asked, some neighbors, ‘Could they come and play tennis on your tennis court?’ The people said, ‘absolutely, no problem at all,'" he said. "Then another message came saying, ‘You do appreciate that when the Sussexes come to play tennis, you’ll be obliged to leave your property?’ At which point I think the answer was slightly different." 

The credibility of this anecdote is called into question, however, by one significant detail: Meghan and Harry do have a tennis court at their Montecito property. It's possible that the sports facility was still being constructed or even renovated when the alleged interaction took place, but its existence has been largely accepted since the couple moved into the mansion in July 2020.