Under Insanity, you forgot to add #9.
9. Repeat steps one through nine.
And yes, OP fits all the categories of a narcissistic, insanity-driven forum dweller.
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You know those red dots on the bottom of your screen?
https://i.gyazo.com/37b2900f026efcbc...c5fd7233ad.png
Just check on daily basis... it follows the same pattern
"If there are no vacant plots" so, like I said, players shouldn't have to search every single ward in every residential area to CHECK if there is a vacant plot. It's not like the game says "WELP there are NO plots available."
But OP's question wasn't "when is there a new lottery", which yes, would be answered by knowing when the bidding period ends/begins by checking a placard. Their question was "How do People Know Whenever there's a new Lottery?" And using the Timers menu is one of the ways in which people know. They indicated they were never sure when there was a bidding phase in process.
"Yet many people just magically happen to know whenever the lotto happens." But we don't "magically know". I only ever know by asking or checking the Timers tab, which is more convenient than needing to find a vacant plot.
So yeah, it answers OP's actual question, which was how do people know. Not "when".
Did you read the actual post or just the title?
Clearly the "when" is also important to the OP.
Now I can go to my Estate timers and get this:
https://i.imgur.com/JbqBrwN.png
Or I can find a vacant plot and get this:
https://i.imgur.com/XTpzoCr.png
Which is doing the better job of telling me when there is a new lottery?
Checking the timers is a "how" that tells me either "now" or "not now".
Checking the placard is a "how" that tells me "when". If I'm planning on entering the next lottery period, I don't have to keep checking Estate timers daily. I already know when.