Sochi property market benefits from the Olympic effect

Increasing level of interest mirrors property experience of the 2012 London Olympic Games

Leading Russian property portal Idinaidi has seen Sochi searches rise 177 per cent in the last month.

The south-west Russian resort city of Sochi which is hosting this year's Winter Olympics is on the Black Sea cost and is one of the few areas of the country to enjoy a subtropical climate. It is already a popular destination for holidaying Russians.

Idinaidi's COO, Carlo Walther, sai: "The Sochi Olympics effect has been dramatic, with both domestic and international property searches booming over the last several months. Sochi has some fabulous new developments, as well as more traditional Russian properties."

Property values in the 14 postal districts nearest the Olympic Park in London have grown by an average of £92,000 in the past eight years, a Lloyds TSB report showed last year, increasing faster than in England, Wales and Greater London as a whole.

"We've seen in London that house prices have risen since the Games were held," said Walter. "This is one of the reasons that there is so much interest in Sochi currently, a well as during the past several months, not only for the rental opportunities arising during the Games, but also for the capital gains to be made in the years following."

Idinaidi, which was launched in February last year, lists more than 8,500 apartments, 400 houses and 200 plots of land in Sochi.