An interesting article from the Guardian over the weekend indicates that all is not well in the Olympic letting scene.
For a start it looks as if the market is being flooded with properties. Landlords thinking of turfing out their tenants to make a quick buck are being urged to think again. A Keatons agent told the Guardian
99% of bookings have been corporate, mainly media-based, and most just want to come and go for three weeks. They want the cheapest price possible for the exact period they need
So landlords offering tatty properties at a high rent are unlikely to make a killing.
“The property has to be at the standard of a decent hotel room, which means a TV, clean linen, towels, kitchenware, and Wi-Fi is essential,” says Joanna Doniger, who runs sporting events accommodation companies Tennis London and Accommodate London.
“So very short lets only are worthwhile for owner-occupiers who can move back in immediately after the games and who have everything a visitor expects. They are completely unsuitable for landlords, even ones with empty properties.”
There is also the problem about what will happen after the games are over. Another agent interviewed by the Guardian commented:
“After the Olympics there will be so many properties available, it might take a long time to find replacement tenants and rents might go down.”
Speaking as someone whose interest in sport is somewhat less than zero, I shall be glad when it is all over.