Will anything ever be done against house hoarders?

[Satachan]

There is literally a free company in Midgardsormr that occupies over 12 houses in the entire server. In an environment that's already super scarce. And apparently they've been doing this since forever on the server.

I also don't think the lotto system is going to fix the housing system either.
Since it's RNG based, you just need to throw more accounts at it to get a house.
And house hoarders already have an incredible about of resources already.

Should a bot swarm or a person with 50 accounts or someone that owns a massive group of people show up, chances are the houses are going to be skewed in their favor.

which brings us back to same problem that we have right now, and new players are definitely not going to be able to get houses. Just like it had always been as before.

Since SQE has shown that they're capable of making things like eureka which is a massive instance, if they want to keep the neighborhood aspect of it, why not make a neighborhood housing instance and randomly assign people to it when they decide to buy a house? Plots can be random or they can functionally be large houses inside but look different outside so that there are no disparity.

[Jojoya]

Since it's RNG based, you just need to throw more accounts at it to get a house.

That will not be as effective as people fear. Having 50 chances to get a house out of 2000 entries in a lottery still means 1950 chances the player will lose.

The only thing that has happened is that the chance of acquiring a house is reduced because players will no longer be competing only against those currently willing to camp. They'll be competing against anyone with sufficient gil who wants a house and isn't at the ownership limits SE is enforcing.

It doesn't make a difference whether it is a new player or a veteran player who is trying to buy a house. The game does not make a distinctions between the two. All anyone has to do is meet the purchase requirements and have sufficient gil.

The problem will always be the available supply. Changes to the purchase system won't accomplish anything when there still are not enough plots to go around.

[Illmaeran]

There is literally a free company in Midgardsormr that occupies over 12 houses in the entire server. In an environment that's already super scarce. And apparently they've been doing this since forever on the server.

Are the houses owned by different individuals? If so, it's likely a case of FC members consolidating into a specific ward to have their own little neighborhood. This may mean they bought them or relocated when plots opened up near their friends.

If they're all owned by a couple individuals then it's likely a case of people purchasing multiple plots when that was allowed back in the day. The thing about house ownership is we have no idea how long those people have owned them. It could be 1 month or it could be 9 years. In the past it was absolutely allowed for people to purchase multiple plots and SE aren't going to make them give up their houses when they bought them at a time when it was within the rules to do so.

If you think about the situation as it is these days, even with botting it would be extremely difficult to buy up multiple plots in the same ward given the current scarcity issue so chances are good that it's a group of legitimate players with the patience and organization to relocate/buy plots in the same ward when it's possible.

[DrWho2010]

FC tags are also not unique, but likely wards like that were all bought by a few people or one or two with multiple accounts. Anything done before the way housing turned out now was grandfathered in, they will not be "taking away" anything from anyone unless they decide to scrap everything and start housing over, which is something I really doubt that they are willing to do.

[Satachan]

True, absolutely true

[Satachan]

If they actually want a long term fix, they really should scrap the entire thing altogether in favor of a more versatile system and less of this stupid scarcity issue.

[Besame]

SE has to care to really fix the system and at this point, it appears there is not enough reasons to care about housing.

[Kenky]

Short answer? No.

Long answer? No, purely because most (not all. There are some naughty people out there) played by the previous set of rules, allowing them to do what they have done. It was thanks to these people that the new "generation" of house-buyers have to play with the hidden timer and placard Extreme. That will thankfully change with Endwalker and it's Lotto system (I doubt it'll help. But it's better than spending hours clicking a piece of wood)

In SE's eyes, they haven't done anything wrong. At least, nothing wrong according to the rules of the time. Them hoarding houses is a bit uncool and certainly deserves the annoyed comments and hate they get. But so long as they use the property they have, we (as a community) do not have any real ground to stand on beside "I want what you have" and that just reeks of entitlement.

All I can really suggest is to be patient. You'll get a house eventually. I would recommend using an Apartment to test the waters, see if you actually like decorating before sinking millions of gil into it. But I know some people that'll foam at the mouth, screaming that "apartments aren't the same as houses!" even though they are.

[True-to-Caesar]

Short answer? No.

Long answer? No, purely because most (not all. There are some naughty people out there) played by the previous set of rules, allowing them to do what they have done. It was thanks to these people that the new "generation" of house-buyers have to play with the hidden timer and placard Extreme. That will thankfully change with Endwalker and it's Lotto system (I doubt it'll help. But it's better than spending hours clicking a piece of wood)

In SE's eyes, they haven't done anything wrong. At least, nothing wrong according to the rules of the time. Them hoarding houses is a bit uncool and certainly deserves the annoyed comments and hate they get. But so long as they use the property they have, we (as a community) do not have any real ground to stand on beside "I want what you have" and that just reeks of entitlement.

All I can really suggest is to be patient. You'll get a house eventually. I would recommend using an Apartment to test the waters, see if you actually like decorating before sinking millions of gil into it. But I know some people that'll foam at the mouth, screaming that "apartments aren't the same as houses!" even though they are.

Well yes they aren’t. An apartment is infinitely smaller than a small house. So as far as decoration goes, you’re very limited.

Add to that the fact you are unable to use outdoor furniture or place your retainers, there’s a significant difference, on top of being hardly visited by players as you need to go through 2 menus and some walking to check out apartments in each ward.

You’re right for the “testing waters” part though. Wasted millions on my apartment.

[Kenky]

Well yes they aren’t. An apartment is infinitely smaller than a small house.

Does said space make it impossible to try the systems in place? No.
Is Outside Furnishing any different a system to Inside furnishing? No.

Limited or no, it is still a better way to see if you like the system at all. Not to mention hardly anyone (that I have met, mind!) actually place their retainers down, nor visit wards that they either A) don't have a house in or B) don't have a vacant spot to buy. I say this from my personal experience, so it could be easily biased. But the ward I live in is dead. I hardly ever see my neighbors, let alone anyone outside of my FC members which, that alone is a rarity.