Vancouver — like all North American Olympic host cities — likely won’t experience a boom or bust in real-estate prices because of the Games, according to a UBC study released yesterday.
Researchers at the Sauder School of Business did, however, find that host cities in Australia, Canada and the United States gain construction jobs as they prepare for the world’s biggest sporting event.
“We do not find support for the argument of host city backers that the Olympics delivers positive economic benefits, nor … that there is some post-Olympic bust,” said Tsur Somerville, lead author of the study. “While construction employment dramatically increases in the period prior to the Games, house prices are the same as they would be in the absence of the Games.”
Jake Wetzel, a three-time Olympian and co-author of the study, said the societal impact of “valuing the Olympic ideals goes far beyond economics or politics.”
