That's a terrible excuse lol. They need 15 houses to "test" decorating in? Ugh, the humanity.
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Not gonna lie....45days is a long time :x
If you couldn't long on because health or w/e. Probably should have asked a FC friend to log in for you. Its against the rules but pretty sure that's a good excuse.
I think apartments would be fine for most if:
a) they had an additional room (like the free company workshop) that looks like a small outdoor terrace and allows for the placement of one gardening plot so apartment owners can engage in crossbreeding. Such a terrace would also allow for the placement of a few outdoor housing decorations like the kiddie pool.
b) they had the same interior item limit as a small house (which is double what apartments allow right now). The current limit on apartment placeables is far too restrictive.
c) a free company that does not currently own a house can purchase a free company apartment instead, which while being the same size as a personal apartment, also has a workshop room as well as an outdoor terrace room, allowing free companies who can't get a non-instanced house to still have access to all the amenities that come with free company housing.
Non-instanced housing would still hold prestige, but it would no longer lock players out of certain features.
If the additional rooms suggested in A) and C) aren't doable, then at the very least create placeable items that can be used inside a standard apartment that allow access to the features those rooms provide. An "indoor hydroponics planter" that allows crossbreeding and an "airship/sub remote access panel" could serve well enough in a pinch.
While I'm all for the idea of freely available instanced housing, within the system we DO have, I support the demolition timer. 45 days is a pretty long time to log in and step into your house.
If you're unsubbed, then the limited nature of housing means the plot should go to someone that can make use of it. The demolition timer is a necessary evil because of the ward system and I don't see them going through the trouble of completely revamping the housing system now. Though part of me hopes they do with ishgard housing.
I don't agree with people being able to own multiple plots, but it's not within my power to make them relinquish land so there's no point in me getting upset over it.
It's an artificial limitation that simulates nothing in the real world, that exists only to produce this drama. If there was an actual housing market where players where allowed to sell and haggle etc. there might be some premise that this simulates a real housing/property market and adds some semblance of emersion. But no, it's not like that. You get a plot in one of dozens of identical wards, each with it's own mirror image version, none of which can be said to have a precise relationship to the rest of the world.
Plant Cross-breeding and FC Crafting are pretty much the only reason players need a house currently, but Yoshi-P did mention in an interview something about a Farm involving Minions in a recent interview so that might be something they are planning to add during 5.X to allow all players access to gardening.
I've lost houses twice, the first time I didnt know about the demolish policy and had a forced break due to circumstances. By the time I could come back not only did I lose the house I lost everything inside it. The second time it was another one of those oh crap life moments and couldn't play for 6 or so months. Lost everything again. At least with the apartment they dont take it away.
I understand the timer is needed while I also wish they would give us an option once a year or so do stop the timer for like 4 weeks in total. Im constantly subbed in the game for my house, I have my house for 4 years now and I use it a lot, but I rly would like to unsub once and take a break for a while. I cant tough cause to get my house was A LOT of work and I did put a lot of work in my house. I dont wanna lose it, and Iam sure they make a lot of money by forcing people to stay subbed so they dont lose the house.
I feel you-- my BF bought a house that we had for months- I decorated it, put my time into making is snazzy, it was even featured in FF-HGXIV which is a twitter housing sharing of amazing builds- BF went off to do other things, never touched the plot near the end, suddenly ingame I get a message saying it's been demolished etc. BF had logged in 7 days prior but never actually touched the plot.
I was pretty blue- I constantly took care of the house/ was always in it/ had my FC members in it yet I was punished since I was only a "tenant" of the house & the deed didn't fall to me. An FC member offered to give me the gil to re-buy the plot because he said there was a huge crowd around the plot & knew how frustrated I was but I declined, it wasn't the FC members problem, it was mine- The plot was beachfront right by a market board too. It took maybe an hour for the plot to be won to someone else.
LUCKILY, a plot opened up in the Lavender Beds later that night, I checked on the plot the following morning to see it still vacant- I stayed up to try to buy it but I ended up taking a nap, not knowing how long it'd be- I woke up literally an hour later, noone was at the plot- it was 10 a.m. est- I clicked "purchase" and suddenly, I had a house!
Atleast, you didn't lose to a bot using a 3rd party program to buy a house. A plot near my house went vacant, 2 people were at it- 1 was a bot, bot won the house. I took dozens of screens to show proof- reported them twice, but I doubt SE would do anything about it. They've all but left the housing community to fend for themselves since it's optional content.