The princess and her husband Ari Behn bought the house in suburban Lommedalen for NOK 8.8 million in 2003 (about USD 1.3 million at the time). It was about 250 square meters, spread over about one-and-a-quarter acres in a wooded area where construction is restricted.
The couple immediately set about trying to remodel and enlarge the house. That's when the trouble began, because zoning laws normally would have prevented any new building in the area.
Local politicians, however, granted the princess dispensation and allowed the couple to violate the conservation regulations that apply in the area. Their house has thus nearly doubled in size, to 433 square meters.
The family moved to New York during much of the controversy, and lately has been living mostly at the summer house in Hankø that Martha Louise inherited from her grandfather, the late King Olav. She even gave birth to the couple's second daughter in Hankø.
The princess, meanwhile, will be heading back to the US in October to promote her new children's book. She'll visit New York, North Dakota, Seattle and Los Angeles as part of her sales swing, which is a commercial venture that's not supposed to be linked to her royal role.
