Real estate agencies said the actual deal prices for short-term renting is largely lower than what the owners had expected, who raised their rental prices to 4.6 times that of the normal rent.

According to the market department of real estate agency Golden Key (Zhongda Hengji), more than 20,000 apartments had been posted out for short-term renting, but only no more than 8,000 of them were leased out during the Olympic Games in August, about 40 percent of the total.

Contracts were signed largely for high-end apartments whose monthly rental marked high above 5,000 yuan in ordinary days, which more than tripled the average rental in the city.

Though deals are limited, the strong aspiration to make money during the games had pushed real estate owners to lift their prices even in the long-term renting market.

The first half of 2008 has seen the fastest growth of average monthly rental rate in the city, from 1,350 to 1,560 yuan, up 15.6percent, according to surveys quoted by China Business Times.

Though the short-term rental prices would drop after the Olympic Games, the long-term rental might rise further, as the owners of the short-term renting apartments seek to retrieve their losses in the long-term renting market, analysts said.

It is estimated that their monthly rental quotations would increase by 3 percent, or 100 to 200 yuan.