Please Implement a Bid/Monthly Maintenance System for Housing

[Saigwa]

As the title says, I think a big problem with housing is availability vs demand, which could be solved with a bid and monthly maintenance fee system.
You want more land so more players can have a CHANCE at a house. However, the current housing system is a "First come, first serve." Meaning, the first characters to rack up the money and log in right after maintenance, has the chance to obtain his/her land for housing.

[Saigwa]

But my question is...what about the new players? What about the players who join the game AFTER all the land has been bought out? What about the land/houses that are taken up by inactive players and FC's in the future? I get it, housing is a luxury item - but the current system goes against what the developers are trying to achieve: Allowing MORE players to obtain housing..... How can you achieve a goal when the current situation logically does not allow room for such? There are just TOO MANY players who would like to own land for housing vs the amount of land that could possibly be implemented.

[Saigwa]

For the bidding system, each plot of land would have a minimum bid set by the economy (though I'd have to argue it would be lower than the current standing prices of housing) and for a set time period, players can place bids on the land - the highest bidder within the last ~5 mins of the bid takes the land. Of course, when they bid, gil is taken then and there. Whoever wins the bid has the money taken permanently, while the others have his/her gil sent back via moogle mail or automatically. When players want to sell the land, it goes back on the market for bidding.

[Saigwa]

To make sure houses are kept in use, instead of land being taken by inactive players and fc's, houses must be "maintained" with a set monthly fee. If the fee is not paid, the land goes on the market. That way, land can become available to other players in the future - including newbies. Logically, if you make enough money to purchase land... then you must make enough money to maintain it, whatever the means.
If I'm incorrect about our current housing system, feel free to correct me, as I do not own a house/land myself. I guess I am just having a hard time understanding the logic behind the current housing system.... then again, the system I propose just seems too logical in the end, eh? (sorry I could only put 1000 characters in post)

[Brises]

This would just enable the people with the most gil to get all the land. There are people who don't have very much gil who would like to have a house. Those people would always be outbid. The prices of even small houses could be driven up beyond what they are now by bidding.

[Amenian]

You can edit your post to make it longer.

A bidding system is already in place, granted it's a reverse bidding system. It just starts out at the max bid and works its way down. If someone buys before you, you were outbid.

As to a maintenance fee. I spent every penny I have getting my home and building permit. I would be pissed if I lost it because I couldn't afford the maintenance fee. The only way a maintenance fee would have worked is if the houses weren't so expensive in the first place.

[Bluevann]

Just click "edit" and add the +1000 characters text in your first post.

[CYoung187]

Honestly i dont believe this wouldn't fix the issue. While it would get rid of first come, first serve there is still too little land available. Costs of houses would rise even higher then they are now which would make even more complaints. There is just not enough supply for the demand. Until that changes it will still be inaccessible to most. Though I do believe an auction system would be a lot of fun and better, it still won't change the frustration people have with land availability.

I do support an auction house being added for new land similar to FFVI's auction house. It would be a fun event.

[Titor]

RMT approves this message.

[Saigwa]

Well this is for the future. I can see how it is sort of impossible to have these features now, as the system was JUST implemented, and the economy is still growing.

SE could essentially allow players to ONLY have one plot of land. - that way, one person with millions of gil cannot own more all the land.

As I stated, the minimum bid would have to start LOWER than the current cost of housing - it is only logical that this current price is the max an invididual can afford according to the current economy. Yes, it would suck if you lost your house to a monthly maintenance fee, but I'm not talking about several mil - maybe 300,000 gil ~ 500,000gil would be the reasonable pricing. As I said, this is something SE could do in the FUTURE, since the current situation does not allow room for such excessive spending.