If you think you've got it tough, spare a thought for The Queen's cash-strapped cousins.
Lord Ivar Mountbatten and his husband James Coyle, who are the first openly gay couple in all of royal history, have to fork out a staggering £100,000 a year for the upkeep of their sprawling country estate.
With money tight at Bridwell House in Devon, Lord Mountbatten takes it upon himself to clean the 100 windows rather than getting a professional in.
While another of The Queen's distant relatives, Princess Olga Romanoff, is trying to raise cash to pay the annual £50,000 running costs of Provender House, in Kent, by giving £14-a-head tours herself.
The Queen's third cousin, who is also related to Prince Philip through her Danish great-great-grandfather and is the great-niece of final Russian Emperor Tsar Nicholas II, has already spent £2million on repairs but needs even more.
All feature in ITV documentary Keeping Up With The Aristocrats, which delves into the extravagant lives of f our of Britain’s most prominent aristocratic dynasties.
Get the news you want straight to your inbox. Sign up for a Mirror newsletter here .
As part of this eye-opening three-part series, the posh bunch have given the ITV cameras access to what really goes on behind closed doors over one summer's social season.
They may be asset rich, but they often struggle to find the cash to support their lifestyles and maintain their glamorous homes.
And they don't want to be the generation that loses a home which has been in their family for hundreds of years because they can't keep up with the payments.
In the first episode, Lord Mountbatten and husband James gamble their reputation, and that of Michelin-starred chef Jean-Christophe Novelli, by hosting their first ever pop-up restaurant at their stately home.
But tickets for their extravaganza cost a whopping £165 per head, so they the Mountbattens had better satisfy the appetite of their diners.
Elsewhere, Lord and Lady Fitzalan-Howard have a plan to help fund the exorbitant running costs of their 126-room home, the imposing Carlton Towers in Yorkshire, which has an annual heating bill of £70,000.
Lord Gerald Fitzalan Howard, whose father was the 17th Duke of Norfolk, and wife Lady Emma want to turn part of their 3,000-acre estate into a vineyard.
"Having a stately home is a privilege, but it comes with a big emotional price tag," admits Lady Emma.
Having bottled their very first bottle of sparkling wine, they seek advice from their friends, Alexandra Sitwell and husband Rick, who already own one the UK’s most successful vineyards at the stunning Renishaw Hall.
But will the Fitzalan-Howards wine prove to be vintage, or just another sad bottle of plonk?
There is also Russian Princess Olga Romanoff, who is giving tours out to fund the upkeep of her estate.
In 1918, Princess Olga's grandmother was rescued by her cousin King George V and brought to England from Crimea after other members of their family, including great-uncle Tsar Nicholas II, were executed by communist revolutionaries.
The Princess says her family's invitations to the palace were stopped by the furious Queen Mother because he didn't ask her permission to marry Olga's mother.
When visitors arrive at Olga's home, they can't believe their tour guide is a real-life princess.
At one stage, Princess Olga was being touted as a potential partner for Prince Charles and featured in articles on the five foreign princesses that possibly could marry him.
"My mother always had delusions that she could marry me off to poor Prince Charles," she explains. "Obviously that was never going to happen because I was the wrong religion amongst other things.
"But mother was determined it was going to happen. God knows why. I would have been terrible for him. He definitely had a lucky escape."
Olga, who is currently single, decides to try out 21st century dating to hunt down her ideal man.
"I've always had this image of a perfect relationship and romance," she admits. "But I have a knack of picking the wrong people."
She says her ideal man is tall, blonde, thin and a bizarrely a "trained killer", as she's always wanted to be with someone in the SAS or armed forces.
Also featured on the show is butler David Hintz, who works for Alexandra Sitwell and her husband Rick at the Grade I-listed Renishaw Hall in Derbyshire.
Alexandra's family have lived there since 1625, while Bahamian businessman Rick is a former chairman of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Cameras follow David as he prepares a picnic in one of the ornamental gardens for his bosses and their posh pals.
"How I got into butlering was through my father," he explains. "My father was a pig farmer and then became a butler but he says it's the same thing. You feed them when they're hungry and you clean up their mess."
There is major upheaval on the estate as the house is undergoing a massive renovation to fix the leaky plumbing and ancient wiring.
"The one thing you don't want to be is boring, says Rick. "And [you must] have manners. But boring... I'm afraid I'm too old. I just walk away if someone is utterly boring. I just disappear."
To get away from the constant banging, Alexandra organises for three generation of Sitwell women to have their portrait sketched by royal artist Nicky Phillips.
While they’re away, husband Rick treats Lord Gerald Fitzalan-Howard to a boys day out racing fast cars.
But the Lords and Ladies are always mischievously self-deprecating as they lift the lid on their posh lives.
*Keeping Up With The Aristocrats starts tonight at 9pm on ITV and ITV Hub
Do you have a story to share? Email webfeatures@trinitymirror.com
