Questions about Bay City

Is it true that all plots in Bay City are 1024, double-prim? Cannot be cut or joined? Ban lines prohibited? Is the region completed in terms of size and borders? Is the water open to everyone to use? Can you build in the sky without restrictions? Are security orbs permitted in the sky? If you live there, do you like it there? Is there much land for sale currently? Are there waterfront/beach areas to buy?

Thanks,
I've looked a little, but would welcome more input. Is it grossly expensive there?

No, and yes. Sizes vary, all are double prim. Nautilus is all 1024 double prim. Bay city plots vary from the 400s to, I believe, the 1300s, size-wise.



Correct.



Ban lines allowed. Not many use them, though.



No: there are areas for expansion on the west and south.



Yes. There are no impassable water ways, and there is a block of sims to the north (the gulf of lauren) set up for boating and diving.



Yes and yes.



I own a store there and spend a fair amount of time in the city. I am very fond of it.



There is some land to buy. Not too much beach as far as I know (most of that is owned), but there are some nice plots. Saw some open in Docklands near the airship hangar recently for some of the better Bay City prices. There are other parcels to the south. Depending on what your looking for, there is a nice one near my place in Imaginario that might sitll be for sale, too. Most if not all plots have at least one protected side, with many having much more than that, and a lot of open area (parks, canals, roads, etc.)



Some of it is, ya. Consider for a long-term purchase if you do, IMO.

Thanks, Marianne. Those are very helpful answers. I shall go and look around. I know Bay City is more expensive than most other mainland. What is considered a reasonable going rate currently (how much per sqm, or for a 1024 plot)? I have not bought land in months and have no feel for current prices, especially in that area.

Also, are there commercial vs. residential area requirements, or is it all kind of commingled together?

Can anyone else suggest any good areas to look in Bay City? I'd like at least one side that is protected water or canal.

Thanks!

You will not get any sensible feel for the land market from Bay City. Personally I think it's grossly overpriced but that's part of the beauty of SL, value is in the eye of the beholder.

Princess, have you consider Nautilus City instead? As trendy as Bay City seems to be, I think Nautilus City offers more open spaces, most parcels have at least 2 protected sides, and it's better adept for residences than BC. Prices are a good 50% lower than BC. There are lots of parcels for sale and some close to a shore or canal.
Finally, the whole city is surrounded by open water sims designed for sailing and diving. The Blake Sea will soon be opened to the west of the city with over 40 sims of open water.

To amplify on Calveen's water comment (and not take away anything from Bay City), the water around Nautilus City is great for sailing. I got hooked on sailing a Fizz after watching one of the USS Regatta's on SLCN.TV and sailed around Nautilus City yesterday. For a noob sailor, I was fascinated what effect the wind had along the entire coastline. It will be even better when Blake Sea is opened in the near future.

Prices can be across the board: when Bay City first went up for sale, prices were pushed beyond reasonable levels, and land flippers sold amongst themselves, pushing it even higher. Some of this has settled, thanks to other economic concerns and a certain dose of sanity, though one can still find the odd plot here and there going for obscene amounts of money. Nevertheless, you'll still find prices reaching the six digit mark for a 1024m.

Over the weekend, I should be able to do a look around and see what's up and where, if you'd like.



Commingled, though there seems to be more residential around Old Town, with some in Imaginario, along the waters in Handa, and near Moose Beach. There are no commercial versus residential requirements. The "trendiest" parts of town are in and around Argos and Rollers, as well as the western end of Handa.



I don't think there are *any* plots in Bay City that are not protected on at least one side (mine has a canal side, and might gain a road side in future expansion).

Two other things of note:

A fledgling city group, the Bay City Alliance, has been bringing together a lot of the landowners in Bay City, and working on projects to benefit all Bay Citizens. There is also some Linden involvement going on at the Bayjou theater and other venues. Likewise, the new Gulf of Lauren and lottery-run New Port Yacht Club.

Mari

I'm wary of this statement. In that I interpreted it mean an investment of sorts.

Bay City is frighteningly expensive. Perhaps because it is somewhat controlled, and you are reasonably assured of not being next to complete ugly. However, nothing is guaranteed in SL, and one day things could shift in a way that devalues this land. Could be of LL's making, or a resident exodus, a better opportunity within SL... anything really.

I'd suggest treating it like any other aspect of SL where you spend money: entertainment money which you should expect to lose (and overjoyed if you don't). It's not an investment.

Terrific progress Mari!!

I guess what I meant was "don't think of this in terms of land you can "flip" for a quick profit. It's long since passed that mark. Consider it instead as some place you intend to stay with for a while, and buy accordingly. If you don't like the way the neighbor's plots look, consider that you might have to look at them for a long while, etc.

I don't consider my plot as an investment, and have had to deal with some neighbor woes. That said, I like the flavor of the area, and built to suit that place with the thought of being there a while. I might treat some other places with a little less "permanence."

Knowing that in Second Life, "forever" might mean a few months.



A lot of it is courtesy of the alliance as well as at leat some continued Linden and Mole interest. Kudos to all of 'em.

Mari

Heh, yes, I kinda thought you didn't mean a financial investment... but the statement was open ended (which means it could be interpreted different ways by different people), and I wanted to throw my 5.2L in.

Today there are some cheap plots at Moosehead, but I think they will be flipped in few hours

I probably should not post this here, But a highly vested land owner in BC is tiering down ATM. There are some deals to be had in Moosehead and Molesworth right now. Prices are still rather high, but i think lower than most of the city, so i doubt they will last long.

Good Luck

Haha...You don't intend to flip the 3 you just bought next to me i hope.... =/

I knew i should have gotten up early today...

edit: BTW your AV is ghosted above one of your new parcels =) Tried IMing you but your still there =/

Another thing I would add -- and an odd one in Second Life, perhaps -- is location. Bay City is situated along Route 66, allowing for road access to Nova Albion, Luna Oaks, the Ahern Welcome Area, and Shermerville. This is kinda nice if one is into more of a connected city feel, and a sense of "that road goes somewhere." The neighboring areas are all long-time "historical" areas. I personally enjoy being able to head over to Nova Albion in my soap boxer (or fly over in my blimp, as many have seen). I like sailing in the Gulf of Lauren and towards the Straits of Shermerville. There is a certain "townie" feel to it all that is somewhat unique to SL, shared only by, perhaps, Nautilus City and areas like Boardman or Brown.

It was fascinating to do a Halloween parade in conjunction with sister cities Shermerville and Nova Albion. Quite unlike a lot of the SL I'd experienced before.

'course, I also think it says something about the area -- for good or ill, perhaps -- that there are often discussions about it here in the forums.



Wow - that is some prime land up there, too. If only I had some spare tier...

I think that goes to the heart of whether or not Bay City is overpriced. For instance, I once did almost 32K in a city atmosphere just so the brownstone I had looked in place. I moved to another location that was already built up in the proper form, streets and all, with adjoining similar sims and was able to do the same on 4K. I paid a lot more per m, but got everything I had in the other place for less tier and less total money. Unless your ego is tied up in how much land you own, the developed places can actually make as much or more sense for many people, even at astronomic prices.

There's also the tradeoff between up front cost versus ongoing tier. Bay City is appealing in that regard. A couple of alts on premium can often cover your tier entirely.

I'm curious about retailing there. Do people's stores do well? Do people visit intending to shop? Is there a perception of upscale retail and higher quality goods, and if so, is that what shoppers find?

I do a fair amount of business there (esp this holiday), which actually surprises me, given I'm not downtown and I'm not the easiest to spot. I suspect, in my case, the location did not drive the sales. Others downtown might be a better gauge.

Yep, double-prim or more accurately when you compare prices "half-space"
Want less land for your prims and to be closer to your neighbours?

This is one of my biggest criticisms about these exclusive locations, I see no evidence to suggest you get any such boost. This is one of the reason's I believe they're overpriced. I don't have any stores there, but I do look at traffic counts.

Having said that, the prices I now see as overpriced would probably quardruple if such a boost to business did exist!

Ive found the entire area to be highly laggy and somehow unstable. My friends get stuck inhills and the lots; some look like jigsaw puzzles............ what good is a saw tooth edged lot?

Its not a matter of money, I could buy dozens of lots there if I wanted, it just seems stupid thats all. I tried to rezz a chopper and buzz about a bit, thats next to impossible as well.

*coughs*
So why post negatively about flippers and then proceed to buy 3 plots next to me and try to Flip them.....
My plots are for sale now too, probably cheap enough for you to flip...