I am so, so tired...

[Kaiproberts]

How would you like them to 'change it' exactly?
And what are you looking for, any house, or one specific plot?
(serious questions, not trying to 'catch you out' or anything, at least not the first one)

Unfortunately, server overpopulation is a very real issue. Not just because of housing, but also for basic game performance issues, like the 6 hour log in queues on an expansion launch.
They're constantly adding more housing wards, giving us 9,000 plots per world (and 27,000 empty apartments) currently.
There should be on average around 20,000 active players per world, not all of whom will even want a house, but differences in server population, and demographics, means that the demand for houses can range from less than the 9,000 plots, to well above 30,000.
By demographics, I of course mean Crystal. The home of RP, where everyone wants a Mansion for their RP club.

This is of course the reason why 'moving to another server' is the only real solution, because it is the cause of the problem.
Throwing new housing wards up year on year is treating the symptom. New servers, and getting players onto those new servers, is treating the cause.

It's also strange to see so many players who don't even have an apartment. It's right there, it's not limited in any way because the supply vastly outweighs the demand.
The biggest thing they could do would be to upgrade the apartment system. Allow players to expand the size of their apartment to a comparable size to the interiors of houses. This gives players who merely want to decorate an interior a viable alternative to a house plot. Leaving the plots for those who desperately want a garden everyone else can see.

No. Not this at all. The reason some of us play FF is for the unique housing situation. I don't play the game for any other reason. Every other game that has housing has an instanced version where everyone enters their house from the same place; no one who plays for housing in this game wants that. We enjoy having neighborhoods, that's the point. We all just want larges too. Larges offer a unique vertical floor plan for building in. I would love my medium if I could get rid of the floor on the 2nd floor just like an open large floorlplan. Get out of here with the apartment gatekeeping bs. Until they make more larges for personal use until we can all get one, expect constant uproar.

[Seraphor]

No. Not this at all. The reason some of us play FF is for the unique housing situation. I don't play the game for any other reason. Every other game that has housing has an instanced version where everyone enters their house from the same place; no one who plays for housing in this game wants that. We enjoy having neighborhoods, that's the point. We all just want larges too. Larges offer a unique vertical floor plan for building in. I would love my medium if I could get rid of the floor on the 2nd floor just like an open large floorlplan. Get out of here with the apartment gatekeeping bs. Until they make more larges for personal use until we can all get one, expect constant uproar.

You realise you're asking for the impossible right?
There are 900 Large plots per world.
They would need to add another 270 wards to our existing 30 to give the same opportunities for getting a Large.
Then you have 3 houses per ward, all all the Mediums and Smalls sitting empty. You want to have your house in that ward?

The design of the wards isn't going to change. People already own Smalls and Mediums, who are happy with their houses, so they won't want to lose theirs or move either.
There is simply no way to maintain your neighbourhood fantasy where everyone gets a Mansion.

Expanding apartments is actually a viable solution. Everyone gets a Mansion! So long as they call it their 'Deluxe Penthouse Apartment' or something instead, and enter via the same door.

[Kaiproberts]

You realise you're asking for the impossible right?
There are 900 Large plots per world.
They would need to add another 270 wards to our existing 30 to give the same opportunities for getting a Large.
Then you have 3 houses per ward, all all the Mediums and Smalls sitting empty. You want to have your house in that ward?

The design of the wards isn't going to change. People already own Smalls and Mediums, who are happy with their houses, so they won't want to lose theirs or move either.
There is simply no way to maintain your neighbourhood fantasy where everyone gets a Mansion.

Expanding apartments is actually a viable solution. Everyone gets a Mansion! So long as they call it their 'Deluxe Penthouse Apartment' or something instead, and enter via the same door.

There were about 100 bids/each on 3 larges this past cycle. That's a demand for about 300 larges. Each ward has 6 larges. There's 5 areas so that's 30 larges per ward added. 5 wards is 150 larges. 10 wards is 300 larges. Looks like we only need about 10 more wards for personals.

[Seraphor]

There were about 100 bids/each on 3 larges this past cycle. That's a demand for about 300 larges. Each ward has 6 larges. There's 5 areas so that's 30 larges per ward added. 5 wards is 150 larges. 10 wards is 300 larges. Looks like we only need about 10 more wards for personals.

Which server is that? And how many of those bids were alternates for an FC?
It's hard to say what the actual demand for Large plots would be across all servers, which is the important thing.
If demands are already met on most servers, adding 10 empty wards just to placate Balmung isn't exactly a smart idea.

How many of those bids want that specific plot, and how many simply want a Large house interior they can play around with?
How many would be content with that same space if it were provided by Apartments?

The post I replied to however specifically said "a Large for everyone" which is why I suggested the completely ridiculous 270 additional wards.

[dspguy]

You realise you're asking for the impossible right?
There are 900 Large plots per world.
They would need to add another 270 wards to our existing 30 to give the same opportunities for getting a Large.
Then you have 3 houses per ward, all all the Mediums and Smalls sitting empty. You want to have your house in that ward?

To make larges available to everyone, it would have to be a system different than the ward system we have now (with 3 larges per ward). I have a solution that might work... and technically SE has this capability in place already.

Imagine a they add a new ward to each of the 5 districts. Each plot is laid out just like it is now, lots of smalls, a few mediums and fewer larges. You pick whichever plot you want. You decorate the exterior however you want. You decorate the interior just like you would for any house (presumably large for the sake of argument). I can own Ward 31, Plot 30... and so can you and you and you and you...

How do we do this? The very same way that SE leverages what is actually on your screen depending on where you are in a quest line... like tribe quests or MSQ. You know how the world changes based on where you are in a quest line? Let's say the exterior of your house... looks like how you decorated it... just for you. So I walk up to Ward 31, Plot 30 and it has my decoration. And when you walk up, it has yours. And... within the scope of the plot of land, no other PCs are visible. So it isn't like we'd see each other at this plot of land. You click the door, it brings you to your instance of a house, not someone else's. I suppose there could be a way to visit someone that shares your plot... Other plots around you, the server maybe randomly picks which version of the plot to display to passersby.

It isn't that far-fetched for an idea. Even when it comes to things you can interact with. My mining point spawns are only visible to me and not to you. What I pick up doesn't effect you whatsoever. Nor does what you do effect me. Make the exterior decorations the same way. If I have that campfire furnishing... you can't click it. You can't even see it. Nor can I see your stuff.

I think they have most of this capability in place given what is in the game right now. They could pull off something like that.

[Jojoya]

No. Not this at all. The reason some of us play FF is for the unique housing situation. I don't play the game for any other reason. Every other game that has housing has an instanced version where everyone enters their house from the same place; no one who plays for housing in this game wants that. We enjoy having neighborhoods, that's the point. We all just want larges too. Larges offer a unique vertical floor plan for building in. I would love my medium if I could get rid of the floor on the 2nd floor just like an open large floorlplan. Get out of here with the apartment gatekeeping bs. Until they make more larges for personal use until we can all get one, expect constant uproar.

If you're just playing for the housing, why didn't you transfer to Dynamis when it opened?

I know some of the other posters in this thread have their reasons for staying where they are even though they really want a house but you don't seem to have any.

Sounds like you're not being entirely honest with yourself (or us) about your reasons for playing the game if you won't transfer to the worlds that have what you want when that's all you claim you want.

I have been doing that for a couple years now. I have a medium and I just want a large. I literally only login to participate in the lottery and then I log out again until I have to reset my house timer. Housing is literally the only reason I started playing. That being said, I have nothing to work towards because a large is the only thing I want out of the game. Combat is literal trash and absolutely unappealing in the slightest, lol.

This confuses me even more. Why pay almost $170 a year just to own a house in a game that you otherwise don't want to play? Wouldn't that money be better invested in the games that you do want to play?