Quote Originally Posted by LailaTov View Post
I've been saving up for months to purchase a house in the game. I am a newish player and haven't even finished MSQ. However, private housing as part of gameplay begins relatively early in progression, and the benefits to having an estate, even a small one, are not just cosmetic (though there is nothing wrong with that). I do not own or really want an apartment, but it looks like that may be my only option. I don't want to join a FC right now, a choice I've decided to make which I know limits my gameplay a bit, but one that the Game Developers want to support (as they introduce more ways to solo-play).

I believe that with limited housing plots, a lottery system for private housing is the only fair way. HOWEVER, I FINALLY got the opportunity to enter a lottery when it went live again today, clicking on a plot that only had 1 other participant at the time. A few hours later it has 10 already. By the time the lottery ends, who knows how many it will have? Suddenly that shady plot up in the corner is looking pretty attractive to me with 1 bid on it - I wish I could pull out of the original bid and switch to a plot I have a better chance of getting. I've emptied my gil coffers, have to wait 5 days to see that I've likely lost, and will have to try all over again with no hints beforehand as to the plots I am MORE LIKELY to win the lottery on. So allowing cancellation of a bid seems only fair. It would reduce the pool for the high-demand plot, so its not like I'm gaming the system. I bet there are many solo players out there who would rather have a less-desirable plot than no plot at all - give us that choice is all I ask.

I believe that the ultimate solution is to have more housing. Somehow. Not saying it would be easy from a server standpoint, but I believe that there are minds out there that could figure out the tech challenges.
That would simply lead to people playing musical chairs with bids when they think there are too many on that plot. Which sounds like a headache for the server with the constant dumping and pulling of gill and participate numbers going around and around and I can already see a FC pooling a bunch into a single plot to get people to pull out so only they are the ones bidding. Look, no matter what you do at this point your odds are basically the same. Only real chance you had is if you did what I did and roll on a house right out of the gate where there were only like 8 bids. Also, you're not even done with MSQ and are new not even in the FC. This kind of stuff is, despite being introduced at level 15, an end game thing that people try at after years of playing. Not to say you can't participate but you'd be better investing your time in the main game first.