ffxiv Empyreum Housing and New Purchase Systems

[Marauder 58]

With the new Ishgardian housing zone dropping in just a few short weeks, Square Enix has given updates on the new purchase systems.

Player Housing has been a popular part of FFXIV, with entire communities and content creators popping up around this feature of the game. It turns out you can do all kinds of incredible things and tricks with housing!

So when the FFXIV team announced a new Ishgardian housing zone many moons ago, there was a lot of excitement. And now the new district of Ishgard, Empyreum, is set to launch with the release of patch 6.1 in mid-April.

However, obtaining a house in the first place has been somewhat a point of contention. With the current system, it's a first-come-first-serve basis...but when a house becomes available for purchase, it's on an invisible timer, and any hope of obtaining the house means camping out beside it for potentially hours on end. In the past, the team has acknowledged this is a flawed system and explained they were coming up with another one.

But now with the release of Empyreum, a new "lottery" system is being implemented. Players will be able to approach a house, pay with a bid, and if they win, the house is theirs! Those who lose the bid will be refunded all of their gil. 

Later, there will be wards in each housing district that operate on the lottery system, and other wards will continue to operate on the first-come-first-serve system. However with the release of Patch 6.1, all housing will operate on the lottery system for a time. Also, houses will be designated for either personal use or Free Company use when purchasing; a house designated for Free Company use cannot be purchased by a private, single character.

Will this affect any of your housing? Anybody eager to move to Ishgard? Personally, I lucked out and got my personal house right behind my FC's house, so I won't be moving any time soon!

Check out the full update below.

Regarding the Sale of Land in Empyreum and the New Housing Lottery System (Source)

Starting in Patch 6.1, land will be available for purchase in Ishgard’s residential district, Empyreum!

In addition, changes to purchasing methods, such as the lottery system, will be implemented across all residential districts.

Empyreum

Empyreum is comprised of 48 available wards (24 main/24 subdivision). Exterior fixtures are designed to complement the surrounding Ishgardian architecture.

* In order to travel to Empyreum, you must first complete the sidequest “Ascending to Empyreum”.

Methods of Purchasing Land

Depending on the housing ward, land may be purchased on a first-come, first-served basis, or by lottery.

At the release of Patch 6.1, all land available for purchase will be subject to the lottery system.

Purchase Availability

Housing areas are divided into plots available for purchase by either free companies or private buyers, and a plot’s usage is restricted accordingly.

* Methods of purchasing land and/or purchase availability may vary by World in future updates.

Retirement of Price Reduction System

Previously, the price of land available for purchase would decrease as time progressed. However, as of Patch 6.1, all plots will retain their initially posted value.

New Housing Lottery System

To purchase land via the lottery system, players must submit a lottery entry for their desired plot during a predetermined period of time. One winning entry will be randomly selected from the pool of applicants, and the player who submitted that entry will gain the ability to finalize their purchase of the plot.

≪Lottery Schedule≫

Lotteries operate on a 9-day cycle (Earth time), and are divided into two periods.

-Entry period:
The entry period lasts 5 days (Earth time), during which players may submit their lottery entries.

-Results period:
The results period lasts 4 days (Earth time), during which players may confirm lottery results and finalize land purchases.

* Due to events like scheduled maintenance, certain lottery periods may be shorter than the standard 5 or 4 full days. Please be sure to confirm the lottery schedule as it is posted in game.

A new lottery cycle will begin once the results period of the previous lottery has ended. You can confirm the current status of the housing lottery via the Housing tab, or by accessing the placard of the relevant plot of land.

≪Entry Requirements≫

Characters who fulfill the requirements below are eligible to submit one lottery entry per lottery period.

-Entering as a Private Buyer:
1. You must have at least one class at level 50.
2. You must hold the rank of second lieutenant or above in one of the Grand Companies.

-Entering as a Free Company Representative:
1. Your free company must be rank 6 or above.
2. Your free company must have four or more members.
3. You must be authorized by your free company to purchase and relinquish land.
4. You must have been a member of your free company for 30 days or longer.(*)
* This is a new requirement introduced in Patch 6.1, in order to preserve the integrity of the lottery system.

Please note that all requirements listed above must be fulfilled at the time of both entry and purchase.

≪How to Enter the Lottery≫

1. You may enter the lottery by accessing the placard at the entrance of an available plot of land in a lottery housing area.

2. After confirming the information on the placard, select "Enter Lottery."

3. Agree to the lottery terms and conditions, and deposit the full sum of the plot’s value. Your entry is now complete!
* Once submitted, a lottery entry may not be withdrawn.

4. Once completed, the details of your entry will appear on screen and in your log window.

You may also confirm the details of your entry via the Housing tab.

* You may only confirm the details of your entry while in your Home World.

≪Results Period≫

During the results period, you may confirm lottery results for a plot of land by accessing the placard located at its entrance.

≪Winning the Lottery≫

When you win the lottery, you must finalize your purchase of the plot by accessing the placard located at its entrance. If relocating from an existing plot, in principle, approximately 15% of the value of the old plot will be refunded to you.
* Please note that the refunded amount may not exceed the value of the new plot.
* Previously, land prices followed the price reduction system, and players who relocated received a refund of 30% of the minimum value of their old plot. However, starting in Patch 6.1, the price reduction system will be retired, and housing plots will retain the value at which they are initially listed. Therefore, the notation for the relocation refund has been changed to “approximately 15% of the value of the old plot.” Please be assured that while the notation has changed, the amount received by players remains the same.
* You may learn more about relocation by speaking to the resident caretaker stationed in any housing area.

You may finalize your purchase of a plot at any time during the results period. However, should you fail to claim your plot of land during the results period despite having won the lottery, your claim to that plot will be forfeit. Furthermore, a 50% cancellation fee will be deducted from the deposit made at entry.

≪Losing the Lottery≫

You will receive a 100% refund of the deposit paid at entry.

Regardless of lottery results, any and all refunds for a given lottery period expire 90 days (Earth time) after the results period ends. Please be sure to accept your refund within this allotted time by accessing the same placard by which you entered the lottery.
Failure to accept your refund within the allotted time will result in the loss of said refund.

* You may only confirm lottery results and accept refunds while in your Home World.

≪Treatment of Emptied Plots≫

Plots that are emptied during the lottery period will be marked as currently unavailable, and will become available for purchase during the next lottery period.

≪Regarding Home World Transfer≫

Lottery entries are only valid within the World they are submitted. Therefore, you will be unable to confirm lottery results or accept any refunds from your previous Home World after transferring Home Worlds. Furthermore, if you complete your transfer during a lottery period, you must wait until the next lottery period to participate.