Residential Only Lands???

Edit: I've sold the land for 5k.

I'll be more careful next time, thanks again.



Hello.

I'm very new to SL still, and the other day, I bought a 512 plot for a place to set up a home.
I bought it @ L8300, and there was one right next to it double the size and price.

Surrounding these two spots were nothing but very attractive, quiet, green residential plots.
These two lands I speak of were owned by the same person.

I logged in today, to find she built a gothic jewelry store, with prices showing through on my land, and a lucky chair, bellowing letters every few minutes...

I mumbled something, and I heard her say back: "I'll buy your land for 4k right now, if you'd like".

Less than half than what I bought it for the day prior. Same original owner of both plots.

Anyway, now that I'm VERY frustrated, as it was all the money I have allowed myself for the time being, and just bought a years membership after hearing from several people (who apparently didn't realize First Land was no longer an option), to go the first land route should I get membership.

I was really counting on the First Land option, but now that's neither here nor there.


So now, it's up for sale for 6k (she wouldn't take that when I offered, 4k is her limit she replied), losing 2.300k... 4.3k loss should I indeed take her up on her offer.

My question is, is there any way to avoid this in the future?

Are there places where I can buy and be assured no lucky chairs/hippie pay spam will totally ruin any value I just (had) on the property I've just bought to live?

I'm a bit upset, I hope this is at least somewhat intelligible sounding.

Also, any advice on what I should/could do to resolve this so I'm not stuck with a property that won't sell due to what has just happened?

Thank you in advance.

Quixotica

Don't buy land on the Mainland. Buy or rent on private island estates. Most have covenants with strict rules about what the land can be used for, what can be built, etc. Most are zoned completely residential. I live in Kush, and I really like it there. There are properties for sale and for rent right now by some of the residents in Kush and in Kush II. There are many other island estates equally as nice. Shop around, check prices and covenants. Talk to the residents.

Good Luck!

Your land will sell, don't worry about that. You might prefer estate land, ie a parcel on an island, many of them are zoned residential, and have covenants that help ensure no nasty surprises. Mainland is pretty much anything goes, and the landscape can change quickly and not always for the better.

Make sure you read up, and clearly understand the difference between mainland and estate land, and read the covenants carefully before making any decision.

Thank you both for your replies.

I was hoping to be able to do this without yet additional real life currencies needing to be used, as I've already prepaid for this game, a year in advance (with no benefits that I can see as of yet! )...

But at least now I know.

Again, thanks.

Quixotica

I am sorry to hear about your experience and I want to let you know that there are many good people in SL and not to let this experience disappoint you too much.

I had a neighbor like that too and I just waited him out. Things change very quickly in SL and if you like where you are, hold your ground.

You can choose to mute the chair I think. Someone help here but doesn't it work to click on it and choose mute?

Make sure your parcel has Sound restricted to parcel. Put up ban lines to keep people off when they go to the store. Build a very tall wall facing her store to give yourself privacy and then build your dream house.

You can also build your house in the sky at 300m if you want and put in a security orb that will protect it from lookyloos flying by. First land was the same. you could not pick your neighbors and it is part of the unique SL experience and learning about yourself.

In SL, the experience is what you make it..fight back and claim your space is my advice. People who act like she did don't have much staying power in the end; it is likely her customer service is terrible too and her biz won't last.

I am always amazed that business don't cultivate good relations with their neighbors first since they are the mostly likely customers and will bring their friends.

Good luck!

if u still own the land and u can affort to wait some days, build a big, high wall over to her and design it as unattractiv as possible.thats not really nice, but her behavor isnt eather, is it.put the price up to make a little profit when it sells and offer it to her.she clearly trys to rip u off, the island solution is probaly the best, specialy as u dont need to be premium member anymore and there are many new island,delivered last week so there is plenty of oppotiunities, read their convenants first to asure u found the right place to enjoy your second life, good luck

Quix - you can also build your house in the sky, up to 700 meters high I believe. That will get you away from the store. Just be sure and fly around first and see what's up there, so you can choose the best altitude. (a freebie flight attachment will get you above the 300 meter elevation...)

I might just build that wall (quick learning to do here).

Lol, thanks all.

Once I get some capital, which may be very soon, I plan to buy mainland sims and resell them under a "purchase convenant" that forbids commercial activity. The covenant will be a written notecard agreement, and if one resells the land, the next buyer must agree to the terms. I plan to have two classes of sims: one for general non-commercial, and one for skilled, experienced, and creative builders. This will work well over the long-term because it is a sort of social contract; if one resident of the sims gets out of line, you have all the others in the sim to fight against the resident or new owner putting up something commercial.

Well, for now, I just put it back up for sale for the price at which I bought it.

In the meantime, I'm off to learn how to build walls. lol

Thanks everyone.

Edit: Search "wonderful green", if you want to look at it to see what I meant, by the way.

Fiji Island has some good places to rent and better prims then a 512. Never buy Mainland you'll get this all the time and it will kill the value of the land looks for islands some are REALLY great deals!

Eh. Not sure what my point was now in paying a year's membership, other than not being a freeloading bandwidth thief, and getting an ounce of respect from other paying subscribers.

But yeah, lesson learned.

Thanks.

Maybe I've missed something (I haven't had a whole lot of time to read up on members benefits), can anyone tell me the biggest reward for paying to play?

Dream on. LL won't let you do it.

On the mainland, once you sell you have ZERO control over what the new owner does with it.

What you propose is only possible on private sims, because YOU, as sim owner, retain final ownership.

As I said, it isn't backed by law, nor would LL honor it, but still it has benefits. For example, if someone puts up a commercial thing, the neighbors around the plot can all put up really wall walls, effectively boxing them in.
This is also why we would screen the buyers beforehand, instead of letting Joe Whoever buy it.

Nonsense this "anti-mainland" thingy.

You can live perfectly well on the mainland... sure, you have the risk of bad neighbors. Just as in RL...

But one thing you know for sure, no owner can drop on you and leave SL.... leaving you behind with nothing.

*Is very happy on the mainland*

Morwen.

I have some beautiful landscape artwork at my store (slurl in sig), browse and IM me your choice. I'll build a wall for you with the landscape you choose. Also send me a LM so I can check out the location and know what size to build it.

I have a very unpleasant texture, that when animated with a script might cause epileptics to have problems. That's a bonus, should you choose to use it for the opposite side of the wall. (all very PG too)

A

Edited to add: I meant this at no cost to you.

That was very kind of you.

I just sold it for 5k, however.

Thank you for the offer.

Now I just need to do much more research before buying again.

Thanks again everyone.

Unfortunately, research won't do squat for you if you buy mainland parcels. The entire sim and everything for 1000 meters in every direction could be pristine woodlands today, when you buy your parcel. Tomorrow, you could still find a field of flaming toilet plungers and rap singing flamingoes next door to you. That is because the mainland has no zoning at all, and the Lindens will not enforce any at all. Anyone can buy the parcel next to yours and do whatever they please, and the only thing you can do, if you don't like it, is sell out and leave. Or wait them out. If they are flagrantly violating the TOS or Community Standards, you can abuse report them... and maybe, in weeks or months, the Lindens will do something about that one violation. Meanwhile, more can crop up, even from the same inconsiderate twit.

On a private sim, the sim owner can choose to enforce standards as to what they will allow to take place. Like residential-only zoning. If someone violates the covenants for that land, or even if they just get too mant complaints against them, the sim owner can reclaim their land and kick them out.

If you don't want to live next to a casino, a whorehouse, or rotating griefing signs on micro-plots, find a reputable sim owner that has been in business a while, has a track record and a reputation to uphold, and who is offering the type of sim you want to have land in. Buy there.

Yes, sim owners can pack it in and move out on you. LL could cash it in tomorrow, too. In general, you'll have a better standard of living on a well-managed private sim than the anarchy on the mainland can ever offer to you.

If you stick with mainland, you might want to try a PG rated sim - they tend to be a bit tamer. Also, older mainland, where the residents have been in their houses longer and are more established, might work better for you. Of course any one of them could move out tomorrow and something obnoxious could move in - but you'd be more likely to have allies in getting rid of it.

Islands aren't perfect either. The island owner could pack it up tomorrow and boot you, and take your money along with him, and you have no recourse.