In recent months, we’ve spent a lot of time schooling you on the ins and outs of royal life, and for good reason: the most famous family in England is experiencing quite the surge in popularity at the moment.

Business seems to be booming for the Royal Family… but is it really?! We all know that the royals of the world are rich—their lavish lifestyles certainly point to big bank accounts—but have you really sat down and thought about how they get their money?

The Royal Family’s lifeblood? Land and taxes!

For the most part, the British Royal Family relies on passive income to get by. For example, the Queen controls something called the Duchy of Lancaster, a portfolio of over 45,000 acres of land that’s used for commercial, residential, and agricultural properties spanning dozens of countries and U.K. territories.

According to the Royal Family website, this land made her Royal Highness over $20 million bucks between 2015 and 2016. The family reportedly uses that money to cover sky-high operational costs like palace upkeep and security.

It’s important to note that the Queen wasn’t the mastermind behind the Duchy of Lancaster. The incredible real estate portfolio has been in the family for hundreds of years; she just had the privilege of inheriting it.

Now, the Duchy of Lancaster isn’t the only chunk of real estate the Royal Family has a stake in; in fact, it’s just a tiny facet of their wealthy legacy. The remaining property, a portfolio that the government now controls called the Crown Estate, put a cool $48 million into the Queen’s purse in 2015 alone!

So, now that we have all of the property sorted out, let’s get to the sticky stuff, otherwise known as the Sovereign Grant of 2011, an act passed by Parliament to pay the monarchs for their official appearances. This fund is provided by taxpayers and has—fun fact—increased by 34% in just the past five years.

It doesn’t sound totally fair for commoners to fund this family’s lifestyle, right? Well, before you work yourself into too much of a tizzy, remember that being a royal isn’t easy. The family made over 3,000 official appearances in 2017 alone, an exhausting feat to say the least. Hey—it’s a lot better than what most people call a “job,” but being an active ambassador is a job nonetheless!

To learn even more about the fascinating inner-workings of the Royal Family’s finances, including the astronomical amount of money these folks spend per year, be sure to watch the video below. Who knew the Queen was such a prolific landlord?!

We’d love to hear your take on the Royal Family’s financial plan. Are you surprised by how much money is spent on and by the Royal Family? Do you think there should be more limitations on its spending? If you were a royal, would you consider waiving your salary?