Figures released today by HomeAway.co.uk, UK arm of the market leader of the online holiday rentals industry, reveal that London homeowners are benefiting from an unprecedented demand for holiday rentals during the London Games. Demand for rental properties in London for the Olympic summer of 2012 has increased by 131 times as compared to the previous year.
It is expected that home owners looking to cash in on the leap of interest could generate an average of £4,500 by renting their home during the 16 day-long event; an average of £2,000 per week. Londoners thinking about doing this can now find out how much a property similar to theirs could make using HomeAway.co.uk’s newly launched interactive Olympic Rental Map. The Map calculates the average income you could expect to make from your home; taking into account the rental rate increase the Olympics is expected to spark as well as proximity to sporting venues and transport hubs.
The Olympics has the potential to earn millions in rental income for homeowners in the Capital. There are currently over 700 London properties available for rent on www.HomeAway.co.uk and the company is expecting weekly rental rates for those properties to increase by almost 150% on average, echoing a trend for price spikes seen during the 2010 World Cup in Johannesburg.
Tim Boughton, UK General Manager, HomeAway.co.uk said: “We have observed a steady increase in tourists looking for holiday rentals, with particularly high peaks in demand around major global sporting events. These latest figures confirm that London will be no exception. Enquiries for London properties have skyrocketed, particularly those properties in close proximity to the key Olympics sites and with good transport links to London’s top attractions. This, combined with the expected repetition of the 150% increase in rental prices seen at the 2010 World Cup, means savvy Londoners will truly be going for gold next summer.”
