Landlords left staring into void after Olympics non-event

Landlords who had prepared for Olympic gold are now dealing with the fall-out of a non-event.

According to London agent Felicity J Lord, part of Spicerhaart, not one of the 2,000-plus people who registered as applicants in the run-up to London 2012 expressed any interest whatsoever in short-term lets.
 
Mariella Petralia, divisional lettings director for Felicity J Lord, said: “There was so much hype in the run-up to the Olympics about short-term lets and how much prospective landlords could make.

“In the end, it just didn’t happen with visitors simply not prepared to pay five, even ten times the normal rate for the duration of the Games when they could quite easily book into a high-quality hotel in London for less than £100 per night.
 
“This has left some landlords with the prospect of potentially expensive void periods as they look for tenants and in all likelihood a fall in average rental rates due to a surplus of properties coming on to the market now that the Olympics are over.”