More 'How to Rent' Questions...

Hi folks

I know this has been gone over before... I've searched and read several posts on how to rent out a land parcel but the snippets are haphazard and I'm a little confused.

I know that a Rent-o-Matic or NDE type box is the in-thing allowing easy payment, eviction etc etc, and someone on more than one occasion has stated that you must have a group, thus allowing members to set their home point.

What I don't know is what settings you have the land set too. Just placing the rental box on the land doesn't affect access to the land does it?

I have seen land up for rent with no group involved at all. It was seeing this that confused me completely. Surely if their is no group involved and the land is set so others can build on it then someone could set up their home and squat for free - until you noticed, of course.

Does becoming a member of a group - not an officer - allow that person to build on group owned land when the land is normally set to no build?

I guess I'm asking for and idiots step-by-step guide to setting a parcel up for rent and then what to do once I get my first customer....

Many, many thanks in advance for any further info on this - of course, if it's already fully explained somewhere else then please feel free to curse my ignorant soul and banish me to the cornfields..

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EDITED for typo's, poor grammer and rotten spelling...

Correct.

If members of a group that build on group owned land, will not have their content returned to them -- IF the land has autoreturn turned on.

1. Create Group and assign land and tier to it.

2. Set auto return on the land, I'd suggest a few hours (3hr) -- opinions differ

3. Determine how you want to collect rent (a Rento type box -- or manually)

4. Determine if you want to keep the group closed (you the landlord must add/remove general members) or if you want tenants to be able to join/leave on their own.

5. Once a renter rents your land and has joined your group, they must make sure that they have your group selected while building on their rented land -- otherwise their builds will be returned to them. Alternatively, they can build -- then edit their build, and set Share With Group to your group.


Additionally -- renters will not have the ability to change their music or video stream URLs directly (via About Land) -- so it's suggested that you either make yourself available for changing those in a quick and rapid fashion, OR you purchase music/video player objects that will be owned by the group but controllable by your renters.

*Note: I am not a landlord myself, but rather have rented land on more then one occassion.

I rent apartments as opposed to the land itself - same approach as the previous poster; however, a few points:


* You can create the group yourself but you'll have to have at least three total people in the group (members or officers) otherwise the group will be disbanded by SL after 3 days. You will be an officer - only add trusted people as officers since any officer can sell the land without your knowledge or approval.

* In About Land, deed the land you want to rent to the group by setting the group to the one from step one.

* When someone rents, add the renter as a *member* of the group (not an officer!!)

* Set autoreturn to something other than zero (I have it set to autoreturn every minute as a reminder to guests to always activate their group because things they place without having the group activated get returned right away)

When someone rents the land they will have to wait for you to add them to the group from step 1, so make sure you are available to add the renter as soon as possible. The alternative is to make the group open and then close it once the land has been rented.

* You need to remove the renter from the group when the rental period is over.

* Media/Radio: You can buy or make a group-owned radio and leave it on the property. Set the radio to be shared with the group so that the renter can move it on the land without being able to actually take the radio. You do not need to deed the radio; however, some radios require you to deed them.

* Renters cannot terraform mainland plots, nor control access to them without your help. Renters can control access to the plot using one of many security devices which they should buy (unless you want to provide more value, then buy a security system that allows others (other than you) to control it).

* All of this applies only to mainland plots. If the plot is on your private island, you can deed the plot to the group, and make the renter an officer the group. You can even leave the group because the renter cannot sell the land. On private islands, this gives renters the ability to terraform the land themselves.


It sounds complicated, but it is pretty easy in practice.

Good luck - and if you know someone that is interested in renting some waterfront land (should you rent yours and others ask you if you have more land), IM me for details

-2fast

I have been able to terraform the land at the places I've rented (always on the mainland.)

I believe their is an option in the About Land somewhere to allow group members to terraform --- not something I'd recommend doing if you renting out apartments, or pre-fab homes rather then the land itself.

Wow...

Thanks folks.... and to Ravenglass Rentals who pointed a few things out in world.

All confusion has disappeared.

2fast ==> I'll bare that in mind

Well, I have a few bits of land to set up now, all your info has helped me tremendously.
5 gold stars to each of you..

Thanks to the OP and those who answered I was going to create a thread like this myself

Something that wasn't mentioned in this thread that I also found out later, you can give each individual the ability to control their music and video's by sperating off the rented parcel from the rest of the group land. Then when they set up a radio or tv all they have to do is deed it to the group, then each individual can have their own music without having to bug you each and every time. Also, you should space the houses out far enough that one renter doesn't hear all the convo going on in the house next to them (20m apart). Something else I also found out the hard way is, if you have a noisey tenant (Loud gestures that go on for hours and hours at a time) go into the land tabs (which one I forget because all of my current tenants are very curtious to one another) and check the box that says to restrict sound to the parcel. That way your not always getting complaints about all the moaning coming from the neighbors house hehe.
Also, if you happen to buy a foggy parcel, go into the debug tab, turn off the fog and clouds, then everything will be just the same as if your in any other sim. (This has to be done every time you log I think)
When you seperate off the land, if possible, you should try to leave enough room so in case the tenant wants to put out patio furnature or anything else, this will make it easier to know whats what and you don't have 50 peoples stuff showing up on the "community land" Since all the land in a sim shares prims it won't hurt if you cut one a few less prims then whats rented, it doesn't effect it any at all, except it makes it a little more difficult to determin how many prims are available, but thats just a matter of keeping track of your prims, the renters prims (Used and unused) what ever you have used to beautify the sim.