Why a house?

I'm another one who "lives" on a work platform in the sky and has a large public garden below.

When I bought my first land back in 2005, I knew right off that I just wanted a garden to hang out in rather than a house. Eventually, I wanted a bigger garden and sold that first parcel. I bought a large parcel of land in Federal and built the first SL Botanical Gardens there. Even then, I just lived down in the garden. The only "house" I've ever had was a skybox that I shared with a former partner. Even though I build houses today, I don't live in one since I spend all my time in the workshop.

I have yet to own anything resembling a house or garden, but continue to rent. I've been IW just over a year and have lived in 4 rentals. My first three were big homes and they were a lot of fun to decorate, but i really didn't spend much time there. My current place came pre-prim-decorated, so I've just put up a couple of prims to add my personality. I thought it was time to downscale a bit and live more 'zen-like' for a few months and just survive with far, far less prims.

As others have mentioned, it is my starting and stopping place every day, my peaceful hideaway and a quiet, private spot for those not-so-private moments...

If i ever own...a garden sounds perfect!

Let's see...

On my land right now:

1 Large Japanese Castle (my home) patterned after Hikone Castle, in Japan
1 Japanese Tea House
3 outbuildings for the castle, including a stables, for my riding horses
1 Shinto shrine to Inari
2 Japanese themed "fishing village" homes on the beach
A nest-like tree house that belongs to a couple of winged fox friends
Another tree house that is a play place for my SL daughter and a friend of hers.

And that doesn't count 4 skyboxes and a spaceship-like recreation lounge above my property...

My character is a high-ranking Japanese Kitsune, mated to another Japanese Kitsune of the highest possible rank. It would be unthinkable for us to live in the bushes like common foxes! Of course we have a nice home!

We don't. Next?

Oh, OK.

I wanted a house initially, and I found the version of FallingWater that one Linden had made, and set it up... and it was completely impractical, with tiny rooms, so I set about building it up and making an elevator for it and cutting down on the prims and so on... and then it got trashed in a parcel return incident... and I got started building it up again and, well, I kind of didn't see the point. I completely lost any interest in having a house, per se, in SL.

I make and sell houses, and I'm the kind who just has to have a house to live in, and land for a home spot. Even in other games. In SL, I live in one of my own houses, or in one of Julia Hathor's tree houses.

The good thing about houses in SL is you can change them as easily as you change clothes!

I just have to have my own place to change clothes in private, and I like a place of my own to relax with friends. And a place to decorate and express myself in that way. I have always had two different lands - one where I work, and one where I live. Just like real life, both places have a whole different feel.

But I don't know what I would do without a home spot, and a home spot with a house. (House being anything, whether a regular house, or a treehouse, or a yacht, like someone posted they have.) When I first joined SL, before I had land, I rented an apartment. I had to have something!

I agree with Conifer. Not everybody needs everything, but once you start wondering why people need a house, then you might as well start wondering why people need an avatar, or clothes and shoes and hair for it. Why not just be a little labeled ball like in Conifer's picture?

But without clothes and shoes and hair, what would be the point of life? I mean, if you really wanna dig for the truth and the true meaning of life, the whole POINT of Second Life is . . . shoes.

coco

I like owning (or renting) land. I like making it a personal space. I've lived on a yacht, in a park, in a modern skybox, and in a small Japanese home.

Whether it's a "house" or not isn't really important. I certainly don't see the need for a kitchen or a bathroom. Unless you've scripted the fixtures for, um, playtime. But I do like a place to sit and chat with friends, and a private spot to log in and change clothes (my "private" bedroom is currently a skybox well apart from the "main" house.)

I like to build, and rebuild, and re-re-build, my own personal space. One of the many fun things to do here.

i still have your first house in my inventory, and an ironing board, i think : PP