Queen Letizia of Spain resides in the opulent Zarzuela Palace today, but her pre-royal life unfolded in a modest Madrid apartment. Purchased for €230,000 (approximately £200,000) in 1999 in the Valdebernardo neighborhood, this property witnessed multiple personal tragedies before its sale in 2008.
Post-Divorce Residence
In August 1998, Letizia married high school teacher Alonso Guerrero Pérez in a civil ceremony. The marriage ended in divorce just one year later. She then settled into her compact bachelorette apartment, advancing her journalism career.
While working as a television reporter for Televisión Española in 2002, Letizia met King Felipe at a dinner party. Journalist Pedro Erquicia introduced them. The couple announced their engagement in November 2003.
King Felipe expressed his joy, stating, “I am very happy to be able to show how happy our engagement has made me and how in love I am with Letizia. For every couple, it is an important step to become engaged. I say to you with conviction that Letizia is the woman with whom I want to share my life and to build a family.”
Reporters staked out the apartment, but Letizia maintained her privacy. Doorman Gaspar provided rare insight, noting, “I’m the only one who has any contact with her here. You can be sure that the prince is gaining more from this than she is. She’s a true lady, down-to-earth, discreet, a real gem.”
Second Heartbreak
Following the engagement, Letizia relocated to the palace for wedding preparations. She allowed her sister, Erika—an interior designer for a TV production company—to stay in the apartment with her daughter, Carla.
Tragedy struck in 2007 when Erika, aged 31, died by suicide in the apartment shortly after separating from her husband, sculptor Antonio Vigo. At the funeral in Madrid, Letizia tearfully thanked the public, saying, “Thank you to everyone who has shown sympathy following the death of my little sister.”
Haunted by her own divorce, her sister’s separation, and Erika’s death, Letizia sold the property in 2008.
