Fix Housing Megathread

[Jojoya]

I don't really understand the point of the fee then. We've already got the requirement that people step inside/interact with their house at some point over a span of 45 days. They have to be logged in to do that.

There's also the issue that depending on where a person is in the game, gil can be very easy or very difficult to get. I think most endgame folks aren't going to have a problem paying a substantial fee, but a sprout that's still going through the MSQ, who may have scraped and saved their gil to be able to afford a plot, might have a serious problem.

Do you like to pay money for things you aren't using? Most people don't. They like it even less when they have to keep paying that money month after month.

Add a fee for houses and you've created a deterrent. Those who don't use their house and aren't making that much gil are far more likely to relinquish it, making the plot available to buyers who would use it. That's gil being drained by something they aren't using that they could be spending on glamours, minions, emotes, hairstyles, etc. that they would use. It won't deter everyone but it will deter many players, leaving more houses available for those who will actually use their house.

It's something a limited resource system needs to keep those limited resources actively used. Someone who only walks into their house to reset the demo timer isn't using it.

The only reason I'm for one is because this is a limited resource system. If SE would get smart and start putting resources into an improved instanced housing system, it wouldn't be necessary. Neither would demolition and purchase timers.

As for the sprout saving up their gil for a house, it doesn't matter. There are none available for them to buy. If they do get lucky, the same methods they used to save up for the house could be used to pay the monthly fee. The game doesn't stop rewarding you gil just because you bought a house. Or they could take up gardening. It's easy to make a million gil a month once you own a house thanks to that garden and it only takes 2 minutes a day.

People who complain about always being poor aren't even trying.

If someone feels the purchase price plus a monthly fee is too large an amount to pay, they can ask a friend with a house to add them as a tenant or get an apartment. It's amazing how many people keep crapping on apartments just because they aren't a house.

Apartments are perfect for the infrequent housing user or the new sprout that hasn't had time to accumulate a lot of gil. Cheap. No demolition to worry about. Free Chocobo Stable. Free Miniature Aetheryte access. Free mailbox access. Someone who barely visits their house certainly isn't doing any gardening so they can't claim they need the house so they can garden.

All my characters share a house and it's not the one owned by this character. It's not a FC house, either. It's 5 apartments all in the same building. I've got a spacious entry and living room. Large kitchen and dining room. Cozy study with a small guest room and bath tucked in. Somewhat cluttered Master Bedroom suite with bath and dressing areas. Garden patio with a sky view.

All that for a mere 2.5 million gil (less than a small house costs), I have 2.5 times the interior space of a small, the ability to place 500 items and store an additional 500 items, and I never have to worry about it being demolished if I stop playing the game for a few months.

[Seleni]

Processing power, storage, database schema, UI restrictions, development time, lore, game design, etc. Whatever the limiting factor(s) are, the houses in wards are likely to remain, well, limited. If it were easily done, it would not have been like these for years.

Scarcity in and of itself creates prestige and thereby demand. So it’s not likely that there’ll ever be enough ward housing for everyone that wants one.

Boosting instanced housing (e.g. apartments) with additional space/feature might help somewhat. But as long as the wards exist and remain limited, there are going to be people that would only want ward housing. For example, some never bothered to even get an apartment before dismissing it as insufficient. It’ll likely be the same with any non-limited housing.

Well they could go thermo-nuclear and eliminate ward housing altogether (massive destruction of entire Eorzea then rebuild?), but they’d get lots of upset customers if they do that.

[Jojoya]

Processing power, storage, database schema, UI restrictions, development time, lore, game design, etc. Whatever the limiting factor(s) are, the houses in wards are likely to remain, well, limited. If it were easily done, it would not have been like these for years.

Scarcity in and of itself creates prestige and thereby demand. So it’s not likely that there’ll ever be enough ward housing for everyone that wants one.

Boosting instanced housing (e.g. apartments) with additional space/feature might help somewhat. But as long as the wards exist and remain limited, there are going to be people that would only want ward housing. For example, some never bothered to even get an apartment before dismissing it as insufficient. It’ll likely be the same with any non-limited housing.

Well they could go thermo-nuclear and eliminate ward housing altogether (massive destruction of entire Eorzea then rebuild?), but they’d get lots of upset customers if they do that.

But at least there would be limited and unlimited systems existing side by side. No one would be denied a house of some sort as long as they met the base entry requirements. Those who prefer having a ward house could then compete to own one of those while still having an instanced house to use as they wait.

[Almagnus1]

Short list of things that would really help the situation:

• Make gardening generally available outside of housing (hopefully this happens with Endwalkers)
• The workshop becomes generally available (through Garlond Ironworks?) outside of housing
• For each character on the server, that char should have a teleport location to each house owned by each character on that server
• All personal houses on a server owned by the same service account should have access to a common shared storage that allows you to store unbound items and gil from any of your personal characters and also remove them from your own characters. Multiple personal houses should not give you additional storage.
• Give us an Ishgardian NPC ward that allows someone to get a personal house or FC house alongside the rest of the NPC ward that costs the same relative to the rest of the ward.

IMO, there's no real point in messing with the grandfathered housing until most of the above happens. That said, SE needs to seriously address the shell FC issue as the entire shell FC thing needs to die in a fire.

[Caitsithhh]

Items available in the FFXI online store are a luxary item. Housing is part of the base game and should be available to everybody (especially with how heavily SE advertises it every expansion).

So you’re owed ultimate weaps and savage clears too just since you bought the game?

[Caitsithhh]

WORK FOR IT, do not complain you don’t have it. It’s a luxury item with scarcity. You’re gonna have to work instead of complaining to get what you want. Life

[HollyJollyPaca]

WORK FOR IT, do not complain you don’t have it. It’s a luxury item with scarcity. You’re gonna have to work instead of complaining to get what you want. Life

Somebody upsetti. We just wish the system was fixed so you don't have to give yourself arthritis just to get a plot.

[Sotaris]

So you’re owed ultimate weaps and savage clears too just since you bought the game?

That's a pretty poor arguement. No one said they owed anything but I kinda agree with how strong they advertise housing as a gaming feature, the items around housing should be available through the game. Same goes for emotes and stuff like that but that a different discussion for a different place.

[Frizze]

there is ALOT of never used houses

This is what the auto-demolish system is for. If those people are keeping their houses beyond 45 days, then they ARE using them. You dont get to decide how someone else uses their stuff.

I kinda agree with how strong they advertise housing as a gaming feature, the items around housing should be available through the game.

Apartments ARE housing. And without logging onto your server, i can guarantee that there are some available right this second for you to buy. No server is even close to out of apartments. Could they be better? Absolutely. But they are available and easily obtained.

[Sotaris]

Apartments ARE housing. And without logging onto your server, i can guarantee that there are some available right this second for you to buy. No server is even close to out of apartments. Could they be better? Absolutely. But they are available and easily obtained.

Did I say they aren't? Also, apartments is not even worth it imo if you want do any proper gardening or use the outdoor furniture the seasonal events throws at you. So yes, they need a big overhaul with upgradability/scalable and have a ourdoor component.