Thoughts on new housing area being FC only

[Zumi]

I saw this in the live letter

Q2: Is the timing for purchasing plots in Shirogane the same for free companies and individual players?

A2: We are currently in the middle of investigating how much of the player population owns housing, so this is still being decided.

I really think it should be open to FCs and individual. I know there are a lot of people who make an FC with just them self to buy a house anyway. Shouldn't really have to wait if I decide I want to move to the new area as an individual. It would just seem easier if both open at the same time.

[Acilith]

It doesn't really matter if they say no personal houses. People who want in bad enough will just level an fc to rank 6 and be on the ready anyways. Buying it on a shell fc and relinquishing it to yourself for a personal house later is still way cheaper than paying house flippers. At least, on the big servers it is.

[Dustytome]

Not sure why they wouldn't just open it up to everyone. The house flippers seem to all be stocking up their characters with lvl 6 fcs and leveling the characters up to get into the new area, so it's not going to stop them at all.

[KiraCifer]

might be cause of those who are in or run a FC have no house to buy all cause you got those who are in one with a house and got to own a personal house as well.

Like one guy know runs a FC has a large house and has to own a personal large and he rarely there and thing pretty much barren but won't give it up to a FC who looking for a house all because he got to it first or when it was reclaimed.

Myself I seen many a FC looking for a house and can't get one cause none open all cause got those who need a personal one what their hardly at and or are in a FC with a house that they spend more time at. So they did this be fair chance for those FC who are looking and building gil up to get a shot then people swarming in and claiming them to try and sell them 2 or 3time the price if not more

[Beckett]

Even discounting people making personal FCs, it seems a little silly to tell new FCs they can only have a house in 1 of the 4 housing areas. Maybe they can make an FC ward (or wards) in each housing area?

[Penthea]

It doesn't really matter if they say no personal houses. People who want in bad enough will just level an fc to rank 6 and be on the ready anyways. Buying it on a shell fc and relinquishing it to yourself for a personal house later is still way cheaper than paying house flippers. At least, on the big servers it is.

A pretty easy way to hinder shell fcs is to have a minimum member requirement. Of course it won't stop everyone but it will stop some people.

If SE are going to do nothing to make it more difficult for shell fcs owing houses, then I'd prefer Shirogane to be open to individuals and fcs. I'd much rather an individual player own a house than someone who cheesed out the system with an empty fc.

[Youkulm]

Everyone here is right. Making it FCs only wont stop people in shell FCs from flipping houses or so forth.

I'm happy for FCs that have a better chance at a home, but not putting restrictions on the FCs aside from level helps nothing to a larger extent.... ( i've always been pretty clear in my feeling that personal housing should have /never/ happened. At least not the way it did. )

[worldofneil]

A pretty easy way to hinder shell fcs is to have a minimum member requirement.

Sorry, but I don't really see how that could work. Right now you need a minimum of 4 people to start a free company, although you can easily do that with just two accounts (one main person, one person on a separate account and 2 of their alts).

If the membership count ducks below 4 right now nothing happens, but then what could happen? People can leave FCs at anytime they want for any reason and a small FC would be very penalised if they get up to rank 6, get a house and... someone leaves so the FC goes up in smoke? No they're not going to do that... likewise I can't see they putting in a temporary timer where you have to get member count back up to X within so many days either. Can you imagine the FC shout spam we'd get?! (or people would just create alts/defeating point of it).

Talking of alts, as you're probably aware a standard account can have a total of 8 characters on the same server and with the temporary help of one other person and about 5 minutes of their time, you could add all alts to the same FC and have 8 people on the same account just like that.

Or it they made it so alts didn't count (making it more complicated for them so they probably won't) people would just "trade" alts with each other.

And if you raised the minimum above about 4 to get started you're just penalising actual small FCs, not the people you're trying to stop.

[Penthea]

Sorry, but I don't really see how that could work. Right now you need a minimum of 4 people to start a free company, although you can easily do that with just two accounts (one main person, one person on a separate account and 2 of their alts). If the membership count ducks below 4 right now nothing happens, but then what could happen? People can leave FCs at anytime they want for any reason and a small FC would be very penalised if they get up to rank 6, get a house and... someone leaves so the FC goes up in smoke? No they're not going to do that... likewise I can't see they putting in a temporary timer where you have to get member count back up to X within so many days either. Can you imagine the FC shout spam we'd get?! (or people would just create alts/defeating point of it).

Woah, hold your horses. I only meant for purchasing a house. Not for keeping it. It would be stupid to have a system that auto demolishes the house if you fall below a certain member threshold.

It would still stop some players because shell fcs are shells long before the purchase. It's not like they make the fc upon seeing a free plot. They would need to hang on to members to purchase it. It of course won't stop everyone but it would make it more troublesome.

[Lelila38]

Personally I really like the neighborhoods being a mix between personal and FC houses. However, what I believe would have been useful even for the old zones, would be a restriction to what houses can be bought. Like, FCs cannot buy a small house (it's very tiny for multiple people) and private people cannot purchase large houses (who needs all that space on their own anyways ;P).
In general, if we want to keep the neighborhoods, we'd need way more wards, I do hope the new housing zone will help a bit with the high demand of housing, theres still so many homeless people out there.