I believe Houses SHOULD be sellable/tradable, otherwise what's the point of Gil?

[Terin]

I already know a TON of people are going to hate me for saying this, but I genuinely believe that this idea that "housing should be COMPLETELY random, everyone should have the same chance" is actually an extremely negative idea.

Thing is, MMO's NEED to have an economy. And let's face it; VERY few players actually engage with crafting tradeskills. It's because it's a lot of work, and the "reward" is selling items on Market Board for Gil.

But what's the point of Gil if there's nothing to spent it on?

Now I completely understand the fear of Real-Money Trading (RMT). But this is essentially punishing ALL players for the actions of those exploiting loopholes. And those loopholes are problematic, only because there isn't an official means of selling/trading Houses, which could ALSO double as a money-sink.

Now INITIALLY, yes; houses would probably be expensive. But if you implement a sort of in-game "tax" for buying/selling/trading Houses -- maybe even scales higher for higher amounts -- eventually it would get enough money out of the game, it would actually stabilize the economy, ensuring those with less gil actually COULD afford houses.

Of course, Selling and Trading plots are two different things entirely. Trading means "I have Plot 23, you have Plot 10, I'll pay you X amount of Gil just to trade places with me". THAT doesn't even affect the Housing system, as it would require both parties own a house anyways. It just allows players to get a plot they really want.

But Buying/Selling plots, I think it also totally justifiable. It's just forcing players who REALLY want a house to resort to sketchy outside sources or RMT.

As I said, I know a LOT of people are going to disagree with this, but I genuinely think that but not allowing players to either Buy/Sell/Trade or even get multiple lottery tickets, it's essentially removing any incentive whatsoever to engage in tradeskills or the game's economy.

[Eraden]

First, how is giving everyone the same chance at owning a house a "negative idea"? Is this just another thinly veiled effort to improve the chances of people like yourself, at the expense of others, of getting a house? Second, this "buy and sell houses" idea PREDOMINANTLY helps those who are engaged in RMT. Most house owners in this game are NOT inclined to just dump their houses. These houses are too precious to them for that. There are a few people who have downsized to apartments to avoid the hassle of having to log in every so often but these people are few and far between. Housing in this game was NEVER meant to be a Gil-making enterprise. It was meant to be a money sink and a feature that would add additional entertainment value to players who are in to housing. There is so much wrong with your post that I am seriously wondering what your real intent is.

[AbysmalDuck]

I realize this is about housing, but one piece you mentioned is the economy in-game. If SE cared about the economy, they wouldn't nuke rare items (minions and so on) by introducing loot boxes in every patch that gave people everything from previous patches.

[Brightamethyst]

If SE cared about the economy, they wouldn't nuke rare items (minions and so on) by introducing loot boxes in every patch that gave people everything from previous patches.

That's about reducing the reliance on old content. They don't want people to feel like they have to "waste" their maps doing level 70s instead of 90s, and such.

[Terin]

First, how is giving everyone the same chance at owning a house a "negative idea"? Is this just another thinly veiled effort to improve the chances of people like yourself, at the expense of others, of getting a house? Second, this "buy and sell houses" idea PREDOMINANTLY helps those who are engaged in RMT. Most house owners in this game are NOT inclined to just dump their houses. These houses are too precious to them for that. There are a few people who have downsized to apartments to avoid the hassle of having to log in every so often but these people are few and far between. Housing in this game was NEVER meant to be a Gil-making enterprise. It was meant to be a money sink and a feature that would add additional entertainment value to players who are in to housing. There is so much wrong with your post that I am seriously wondering what your real intent is.

I think skepticism is totally fair.

Here's the thing, though; Houses are clearly extremely limited. I certainly hope they can continue to add Wards, and it would be AWESOME if there were enough Houses to give everyone their choice of plot. That is sadly not going to happen any time soon (especially when the Devs just recently talked about the difficulties of acquiring additional servers).

That makes Housing a commodity, both desirable and limited. That gives it value, regardless of anyone's thoughts on the matter.

By letting people at least TRADE houses, it would immediately open up a lot of options. For example, I have one of the beachfront Smalls in The Mist, which I think many consider pretty desirable. However, my sister has a small in Lavender beds. I would totally trade my house for one in her same ward, because I feel like that would just be a lot of fun.

With the current rules in place, I will likely NEVER have an opportunity to become "neighbors" with any of my friends. Because how astronomical is that chance, really? You'd have to hope that specific person just quits the game, and then go to the placard and click like hell for anywhere from, what, 2-to-16 hours? Something like that? Which I have a job, so that ALSO needs to all happen over the weekend. And I have probably, literally a 1-second window (at best) to purchase the relocation, because there are going to be others there doing the same thing.

OR...

I could whisper the owner when I saw them, say "hey how would you like to trade houses?", maybe I even pay an in-game fee as a gil-sink, and BAM! Both parties are super happy.

Now taking this further, I honestly believe Buying and Selling should be possible. Because if you REALLY want to make Gil, it's actually remarkably easy. Again, just work up crafting skills and start selling stuff. That gives YOU, the Player, complete agency in whether or not you can get a house. Because otherwise, it's LITERALLY a lottery. It's "fair" in that everyone gets the same chance, but I would argue it's NOT fair to those who are really willing to work towards a goal. If you don't already have a house, it is very likely that you will NEVER get a house as-is. Buy enabling the buying and selling of houses, ANYONE would be able to get a house -- you just have to earn some gil.

And again, throw a sizable fee on top, and it doubles as a gil-sink. Make it like a 25% "tax". So if a guy wants 75m for his house, it might actually cost 100m. But then that's 25m taken out of the economy, meaning that over time, it would drive prices down. Again, probably CRAZY expensive at the start, but over time things would level out.

That's not to say there isn't a place for the Lottery system. I do think it's a great idea for a newly-opened location, and if a house is relinquished or demolished, I think the lottery's great, especially for people who work. I think we would all agree, it's a massive improvement over the current system. But I think we'll just run into the same issue, where the housing market is completely static. At the VERY least, allowing people to Trade plots opens up some level of flexibility.

[Jojoya]

And again, throw a sizable fee on top, and it doubles as a gil-sink. Make it like a 25% "tax". So if a guy wants 75m for his house, it might actually cost 100m. But then that's 25m taken out of the economy, meaning that over time, it would drive prices down. Again, probably CRAZY expensive at the start, but over time things would level out.

It's not going to have any impact on prices because 25 million gil removed from a server economy is nothing if you do the math and compare it to how much is generated through normal game play.

For your proposed tax to make a noticeable dent in the overall player economy and get prices to lower, your tax would have to be collected several dozens if not hundreds of times a day on each server. We don't have enough desirable housing for that to happen.

All player to player trading would accomplish is giving RMT more solid control over the housing market. It would be simple for them to meet your gil price then resell at the same gil price +25% (to cover your tax) plus several hundred dollars real money.

Control over housing availability needs to be taken out of player and RMT hands. It is not good for the game. Those who want to make gil have plenty of other options to pursue. The lottery is a step in the right direction but it is not enough.

If the concern is creating a better gil sink, then having an instanced housing system where every character (not just player) could buy the most desired housing location they can afford with their personal wealth would do a far better job, or even multiple locations.

[Minarisweet]

I agree that the game needs actual gil sinks but it shouldn't be housing in my opinion... Housing should be accesible to everyone because its one of the selling points of ffxiv and a whole another world of content itself.

[Eraden]

I agree that the game needs actual gil sinks but it shouldn't be housing in my opinion... Housing should be accesible to everyone because its one of the selling points of ffxiv and a whole another world of content itself.

The accessibility problem is not due to the cost of housing. It is due to the LACK of housing. That is a whole other topic that can be discussed.

[Lily_Skye]

I agree that the game needs actual gil sinks but it shouldn't be housing in my opinion

erp sessions are pretty expensive

[Poporito_Popoto]

Can I have your gil?

I have plenty, but it still isn't enough for everything I want.