Olympics 2012- Regenerating East London and higher rental prices all over the city

The Olympics are coming to the UK next year

The Olympics are coming to the UK next year making it a big year for our country. Team GB have pledged to come at least fourth on the medals table and landlords, agents and first time buyers are making the most of rental prices and new buildings being built-in East London.

Landlords and agents

This is obviously a fantastic time to let your property out, people from all over the world will want to come over to the UK and they need places to stay.

London estate agents, Foxtons, seem to be making the most of the Olympic season. Foxtons are advertising their ‘Olympic Properties’ for extraordinary  prices, one of their properties being a penthouse in Knightsbridge setting potential tenants back £100,000 per week.

They also have two properties in Wapping, one is £1,350 a week not during the Olympic period but then there is one at £7,000 a week during the Olympics seeing an increase of almost £6,000 for the same area of London.

Foxtons are not the only ones upping their rental prices, on a whole rent will rocket in the run up to the Olympics by six times the normal value causing some legality issues.

Owner occupiers who also want to join in on the bandwagon may not realise that their lease may not allow them to rent out their property. If they do want to rent their property out to tenants they need permission from their lender, insurance company and also get planning consent. Any breach in local council requirements could set them back £20,000 in a hefty fine.

First time buyers and the re-birth of East London

East London in green has some of the poorest boroughs in London

East London is seeing an amazing transformation in the run up to the events in 2012, a multi-billion pound investment has been pumped into the area and they are certainly seeing a re-birth there.

In the Olympic boroughs, Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest, they are seeing great housing developments in what are the poorest boroughs of London.

Flats are being built and they seem to be pulling in the first time buyers, owner occupiers and letting agents are also trying to get in on the money-making action and investing in buying property in the Olympic boroughs.

Ian Conway from Felicity J Lord’s estate agents said that the real benefits will come after the games.

“Obviously the infrastructure is being put in now and they’re working day and night to create a nice atmosphere, but i don’t think we’ll see the full extent of it until after the games, which is historically when Olympic cities tend to see the benefits of regeneration.”*

Hopefully this will create a wonderful regeneration for a poorer part of the city.

*Quote source- Findaproperty.com