Housing tends to come up every time there's a big jump in the game's population, but something I don't see discussed very often is why haven't there been more shared estate slots added?

Currently, all housing sizes can share with three additional people. This seems like a bit of an arbitrary number, I'd assume the limit is in place either due to some sort of pre-existing technical limitation or simply to force more people to need their own houses.

My personal opinion is that the number of slots should be increased in some way finally. If it were up to me, small houses would remain at 3, mediums go up to 5, and large up to 7. This gives added function for each step up in price in a reasonable way, with larges having enough room to accommodate a full party at most.

I believe this would also encourage more activity in housing areas since more people could actually use the houses we have available. For example, you could share a large house with your entire static and gather there when you're raiding without having that awkward come-and-go thing going on that happens now. Or players that RP could share their houses with "guests" in and out, as a cafe or inn or other things, and they could actually use the services in it.

Social groups and statics tend to encompass more than just a single FC, also, so that is why I don't believe FC housing on its own is enough to fulfill this purpose. Sometimes you just don't want to have to share a whole house with an FC, either, but a few people you can choose.

It has advantages across a variety of purposes and playstyles and might serve to actually liven up the housing areas and alleviate shortages. Hopefully this can gain some traction and get noticed.