Online House Hunter: In the wake of the Olympics

Olympic venues such as Lee Valley should leave a positive wake behind them

DAVID Spittles looks at the ‘Olympic effect’ in today’s Independent and how it is helping to revitalise the Thames gateway in terms of housing, business premises, leisure facilities and other infrastructure.

But there’s more than just London to the Olympics and Paralympics. There are a number of venues around the country where a chance to join the renaissance – and get a ringside seat – is just a house move away.

Weymouth Bay and Portland harbour, for instance, will be the venue for sailing competitions and this has led to the regeneration of the former Naval Air Station – now known as Osprey Quay. An athletes village being built on the Officers Fields’ site will house up to 400 competitors while British athletes will be accommodated at the nearby Castle Court development. A hotel, shops and restaurant also form part of the development.

And at Hadleigh Farm, Essex work is underway on a mountain bike course for the 2012 games. Historians will recognise Hadleigh Farm as the place where the Salvation Army began – and the Sally Army still owns the land. Although the track and grandstand will only be a temporary structure, Hadeligh Farm is included in the Essex Legacy project.

In neighbouring Hertfordshire is the Lee Valley White Water Centre which will host the Canoe Slalom competition. The courses and centre will remain after the Olympics and it is hoped to extend the Lee Valley park southwards to the River Thames. Lee Valley White Water Centre, Lee Valley VeloPark and Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centres in Olympic Park will be owned and operated by Lee Valley Regional Park after the games.

You may be too late to snap up a house in time for the Olympics but the regeneration programmes should ensure that living in those areas touched by the Olympics proves a real winner.

USEFUL LINKS:

• Independent online property search
• Independent Property Section
• Property for sale and let in Weymouth Bay
• Property for sale in Hadleigh, Essex
• Property for sale in Cheshunt, Herts
• Olympics 2012 venues
• Olympics 2012 official site

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  Regrettably much of the development around the Olympic Village is being made by Housing Associations, who are taking great advantage at claiming grants from the government, but providing a very low standard of service to the leaseholders who get tricked by some of the unscrupulous Housing Associations into buying into their New Home NewBuild schemes.

  Although some Housing Associations are relatively good, others like the ones that service our homes are not, and instead create havoc and mayhem on the lives of unsuspecting first time buyers, who are just trying to get onto the property ladder in a still overinflated housing market.

  There is no support provided for these first time home buyers, as the government throw them to the wolves (irresponsible, incompetent and empathy lacking Housing Associations such as ours) believing that they (the HA’s) would take care of them rightfully.

  So while the Olympic redevelopments offer some hope to some, the reality is that most get burnt badly by joining ill-conceived New Home NewBuild schemes.