Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are considering renting a second home - an apartment in New York near the United Nations headquarters, it has been rumoured.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex currently live in an £11.2million ($14.65million) mansion in California, which they bought with a £7.3million ($9.5million) mortgage.

They have lived in the 7.4-acre compound in the celebrity enclave of Montecito since July 2020, four months after stepping down as senior royals and leaving Britain.

But local gossip in New York suggests the Sussexes are now looking at also renting a home near the UN headquarters, which are located at Midtown East in Manhattan. 

The couple visited the UN in a rare public appearance in September last year, and were photographed meeting with Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed.

The trio spoke about issues ranging from climate action to women's economic empowerment and mental wellbeing to youth engagement and vaccine equity. 

Harry and Meghan were in New York at the time to attend Global Citizen Live, a concert at Central Park which called on leaders to adopt a vaccine equity policy. 

The couple were pictured in front of the UN logo alongside Ms Mohammed, and in another photograph where Meghan could be seen greeting her with an elbow.

Ms Mohammed, the former environment minister for Nigeria, shared the first picture in a tweet at the time, saying: 'In conversation with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.