Inaccurate L$1 Isle Listings: Bug, Exploit, or Scam?

The other day I got the idea to port around to some island plots I saw listed for L$1 in Land Sales Search. I just wanted to see what peoples' covenants said, and how clear they made it that you weren't really purchasing the land. Strangely, about half the plots I ported to from the search results were NOT really listed for L$1 in About Land, but for prices well into the L$20K-30K range. (Meaning that the Land Sales search results did not match the actual About Land sale price.) I checked the sim coordinates each time, and the coords from the search results matched those where I was standing, but I could not find any land listed for L$1 when this happened.

Now, because of the super low price, tons of newbies kept porting in on top of me. At first I wondered if maybe people were just buying and relisting the land real quick (assuming the resale flag was set), as some sort of scam- but I don't see how such a scheme would be profitable.

Anyway, I went to about 10 "L$1" places, all were still for sale when I got there, but only half were actually listed for L$1, despite search results and accurate coordinates. What's going on there?

cheap tactic that will bite them in the ass sooner or later

Well there are two discussions here. The first is the exploitation of the Island Land Sale feature to show up at the very top of the list with L$1 sale prices.

But specifically what I'm talking about is that when you actually get to the land, it is NOT set to sale for L$1. This was the case in 5 out of 10 places I visited, and I'm trying to figure out if this is a bug or a scam...

You can game the system by changing the title of the parcel. For example, if I'm really selling a mainland parcel for $20K, I can go into the About Land pages and write " L$1 parcel" or some such nonsense. So, while the parcel itself may be priced correctly, you can rewrite the title of the parcel.

No I mean, you go to Land Sales search, type in a plot size (I always look for 204, hit Search, and the first ten search results are island parcels set to L$1 because they have the lowest L$/square meter price possible. (Search results are always initially sorted by L$/m.) None of these parcels had "L$1" in their names/descriptions. Their search results indicated that the entire 2048 or 4096m plot was listed for L$1, but when you teleported to the plot, the list price was always over L$20,000. How did the Land Search get it wrong? (They wouldn't have been on the front page of search results if the real list price had been any greater than L$1000.)

its 100% scam by some island owners to get ontop of the search list, they list it for L$1 so it will show up top, but its actually a reservation or the land will be taken away from you unless you pay the actual price which will be thousands.. these estate owners need to be banned from the land sales search if they cant act responsible

Jackson and steve, you should link Wildefire to our prior threads on this topic. (too lazy to look them up myself).

I think you are searching by actual land prices which come off the parcel itself. This must be a bug.

I'm thinking it's either a bug/exploit of some kind, or the land is set to allow resale and entrepeneurs are going around buying these plots at $1L and immediately setting to resale at 20-30K, hoping to make some quick lindens while leaving the new buyers with the rental fees to sim owner.

I will do some more detailed investigation when I get a chance.

Hmm if it was my land and I was trying to rent it out buy just listing a low sale price, I would make the sale price the first rent payment, state clearly in the covenment that the land wasn't to be resold then just continue ripping off the landbots everytime they brought it and repriced it by ripping it out from under them and make a tidy profit from "other peoples mistakes " as they do

do landbots (generally speaking) tend to bother with private estate land?

Okay, there is DEFINITELY something shady going on here, although I can't say whether it's an innocent bug or an intentionally exploited hole in Land Search. Here are the exact steps I followed, along with photographic evidence. I have covered up the name/group of the land in question. All pictures feature land owned by the same person/group. This realtor has several other L$ listings with similar anomalies. The pictures all confirm that I am standing at the coordinates advertised when checking About Land, and have the updated search results alongside.

Procedure:

1. Search for land, All Types, PG & Mature, 2048m. Results always sorted by best L$/m value.
   
2. Teleport to land listed for L$1.
   
3. Check About Land.
   
4. Refresh search, confirm land is still listed in search results.

So, I can stand on land, be staring at the true sale status/price, and yet a fresh Land Sales search claims the land is currently for sale at L$1.

Picture 1:
Search Results: L$1, area 56816.
Real Status: L$14400, area 512.



Picture 2:
Search Results: L$1, area 37520
Real Status: Not listed, owned by group that owns sim.



Picture 3:
Listed: L$1, area 31072
Real: Not for sale.



And just for the record, I am reporting this as a bug.

No, they scan the mainland only because there are no covenants or hidden fees.

Wildefire, did your screen grabs make some sort of point? I was too busy staring at your tush.

I see Wildfire's point, and I guess I don't understand how everyone else seems to be missing it. Search says rediculously low price, land is NOT for sale at that price.

Wildfire, I have seen this before, but not so extreme. Several months ago, when I was looking to expand from my first land, just before the "land bot" days, I found several plots of land in the search that were at about L$5sqm. Over and over again I teleported to that land, only to find that it was actually about 3 times that much or higher. I ended up giving up.

This was also as Wildfire is saying - it was not in the description, it was in the actual price column, which is SUPPOSED to show what the land actually costs.

At the time I just shook my head and moved on. Now I'm beginning to think there is an exploit here being used to spam the land search. There is no possible way that this much land is being actually sold for those low amounts.

There has been a Linden posting a lot here recently.... helloooooooo, can you explain this for us, pretty please???

Serenarra, I have reported this as a bug and pointed Support to my post in explanation (since you can only include one pic in a bug report). I will report here if anything comes of it.

Also, @Raymond: *smack!*

Strange , the only way I would see it if it isnt a bug/exploit is that the land owner is sitting on the property and changing it as soon as someone teleports on.. that dont seem very effeicent, but enough people are starting to raise issue with the improper use of the search. Somethings going to have to give quickly

And in each of my cases, I was right there standing on the land the whole time. I'd open About Land and do a fresh land search on the spot.

well IF this is a software thing, then I would have to point it to exploit since it seems to happen to only a few peoples property and not the general sales population

Seems to me that if someone knows how to make a landbot then they could easy make a bot that would automatically change the land price when someone is detected teleporting in. Maybe looking to see if the land is in a group might show the Private sim bot

OH NO PRIVATE SIM BOT!~~~~~

Late to the thread but is it possible this is a landing point problem? If I take a parcel, make it for sale, set the landing point to be on the other side of the sim then when you see it and teleport in you will end up in the wrong place. This is especially easy for estates because you own the whole sim so can set every parcel's landing point wherever you like.

Five months late, you inconsiderate oaf. The turkey I slaved over is completely dried out and Wildfire drank the last of the wine on 5/10. But your landing point hypothesis has potential.

It's one of two methods to achieve this sneakiness. And it happens too often (and with the same people) to be an accident.

Wildfire, in post #16 you promised an update. I'm on the edge of my seat here. Please don't tell me that you never heard anything. I wont be able to stand it.

EDIT: Nevermind. I found the newer thread where you responded.

To add to the confusion, I have actually seen island plots for 'sale' for L1 and one would then pay the owner in US$ per month, an amount to cover tier and more.

Personally, I don't think island land should be listed under Land for Sale at all, as it clearly isn't for sale.

Neither is mainland. Eventually LL will be legally forced to stop calling land sales "ownership". I'd prefer they take it upon themselves to stop using the term.