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Sabrina and I both virtually reside on Vesperia. This island is actually comprised of 4 SIMs that were fabulously landscaped by our friend and landlord, Raziel Vesperia. When Bri and I were looking for a place to decorate and leave our stashes of stuff, we found lots of private sandbars chopped haphazardly into crappy rectangles with canals in between. The people who sold these rectangles called them “islands.” We called them a bucket of blah.

Upon taking up residence we soon learned that a) we were better at helping residents than Raz (who prefers to zip about in his various toys and frighten the unwary); and b) we wanted to be able to meet and greet those who would be our virtual neighbors. So we sort of self-appointed ourselves as his real-estate agents and tricked him into paying us.

Vesperias 1 - 4 are full now and populated with folks we like. While Raz is always sequestering off new land acquisitions for us to sell, it has been an eye-opener for me to realize how people jump into land purchase head-first in SL without really understanding what is entailed. So, I thought I’d write a little (or, more likely, a lot) here explaining the difference between purchasing Linden Labs land and purchasing or renting from a private SIM owner.

First, let’s talk about Linden Land. When you initially join SL, assuming you have a paid account, you get the right to purchase “First Land.” This is a small plot is also referred to as a 512 (so called because it represents 512 sq meters of virtual land). You own this plot from the ground level (whatever it may be — generally around z-coordinate 25 or so) to the height of the sky (generally around z-coordinate 740). You can build and/or landscape anything you want on Linden Land so long as it doesn’t violate TOS. You can also fill a 512 with up to 117 prims worth of trinkets, This “First Land” is your personal Tara, but it is almost assuredly surrounded on all sides by other people who can do whatever the hell they want with their land as well. This means you might find yourself the victim of urban blight with a 10-story tall pink skyscraper covered in images of farm animals in compromising positions next door.

Such close quarters generally translates into a lack of privacy as well, with neighbors able to scroll and zoom in on every little thing you do. So, invariably, you decide you want to “move” someplace else. And this is where you come to the fork in the road of SIM land ownership.

So what path is right for you? Well, it’s a long involved question. If you want to read and learn more about it, follow the cut.

I. Purchasing, Owning, & Maintaining Linden Land

Purchasing Linden Land is theoretically easy and virtually risk-free. You find a plot that you like which is up for sale, right-click the ground, select “Buy Land.” You’ll get a little pop-up that explains how purchasing the parcel will affect the monthly fees you pay to Linden Labs. If you’re short on funds, the pop-up will also allow you to buy more lindens to make up the difference. Once you click “Purchase” on the pop-up and pay the listed amount, the land is instantly transferred to you. NEVER PAY A SELLER DIRECTLY. If you want to haggle, reach an agreement and then ask them to change the list price on the lot. Otherwise you could be out a bunch of L$ with nothing to show for it.

Once you’ve purchased the land, you will “own” it for as long as your account is active and you continue to pay your membership fees and tier dues. Tier (also called “Land Use Fees) is paid monthly to Linden Labs and the table of fees can be found in many places on the SL website, including here. The theory behind tier is that you are reserving space on the server and are paying the upkeep for it, the same way you’d pay hosting if you maintained a website. Depending on how large a parcel you purchase, tier can get pricey. It must be paid every month in addition to your membership fees.

What you get:
An empty parcel with Linden Land base landscape textures and the prim allowance which accompanies it.

The benefits of buying Linden Land are:

1. What you see is what you get. You pay, you own — no muss, no fuss.
2. You deal directly with Linden Labs. You have recourse directly with them concerning any customer service issues. There are no middle men.
3. What you buy is yours for as long as you pay your maintenance fees and cannot be altered or edited by anyone except Linden Labs and you.
4. No zoning regulations. If you want to build a space station next to a log cabin, no one can stop you so long as you don’t violate TOS.

The problems with buying Linden Land are:

1. Really choice properties (coastline, etc) can be extraordinarily expensive, if they are available at all.
2. You have no control over who moves in next-door or what they choose to build. In addition to the urban blight issue, you can also have neighbors who create horrendous lag with their antics.
3. Privacy is hard to come by. You can restrict access to your lots, you can build skyboxes, etc, but privacy on Linden Land is a tuff trick to turn.

II. Purchasing, Owning, & Maintaining Private SIM Land

Alternately you can opt to purchase land on a Private SIM. Of course you can always buy a full SIM directly from Linden Labs for $1250 US plus $195US per month in tier fees. But, if that’s more than you’re looking for, odds are you just want a parcel in a nice place for less than the price of a black market kidney.

This is where Private SIM land comes into play. Private SIMs have been purchased by an individual from Linden Labs and have been parceled according to the individual’s plan. Private SIMs can be residential or commercial, or both. In this case you meet with the SIM owner, or their representative and take a few extra steps.

First, you agree to the purchase price. With any professional SL “Land Baron” these prices are generally set and there isn’t a lot of haggle room. You pay the purchase price of the parcel directly to the owner (or their representative) in Lindens or, sometimes in $US via PayPal, or some other on-line payment system. I would never give my credit card information to someone I didn’t have absolute confidence in, but that’s just good common sense.

Second, you sign up for tier. The Private SIM owner pays Linden Labs’ Land Use Fees directly, so you have to pay your tier to the SIM owner. Again, these can be handled in-game in Lindens, or via a PayPal subscription.

Finally, the land must be “deeded” to you. Because Linden Labs does not allow Private SIM owners to actually sell parcels, you’re basically paying to sublet from them. To do this, you’ll need to create a group (there is a L$100 fee to create a group, and you’ll need to make sure it had at least 3 members at all times; a good rule is to have a few friends join as members, but keep yourself as the only Officer of the group). Then, you’ll invite the SIM Owner to the group and they’ll deed the parcel to that group. Then, they’ll unjoin the group, leaving you as the owner with control over the parcel.

What you get:
An empty parcel with the Private SIM’s base landscape textures and the prim allowance which accompanies it.

The benefits of buying Private SIM land are:

1. Choice properties (coastline, etc) are generally available for reasonable prices.
2. Larger parcels are available, providing more prim use, more space, and thus, more privacy.
3. Many Private SIMs have zoning restrictions that limit the implementation of lag items by your neighbors and also restrict the type of buildings they are permitted to construct.
4. You don’t have to have a paid account to buy Private SIM land. You can buy on a Private SIM with a free account and Linden Labs can’t say boo about it.

The problems with buying Private SIM land are:

1. In they eyes of Linden Labs, you do not own your land and, in a worst-case scenario, you have no recourse with Linden Labs; if you have a problem with the owner of the SIM, Linden Labs cannot help you.
2. The SIM owner has the ability to edit or alter your parcel at any time for any reason. They still own the land. You only have they rights and privacy they give you.
3. If the SIM owner goes belly-up and stops paying Linden Labs, you’re out of luck.
4. Zoning restrictions apply to you as well as your neighbors. You might not be able to build that spaceship next to the log cabin on a Private SIM.
For these reasons I cannot stress to you how important it is to check out the reputation of the person you’re buying Private SIM land from. IM other residents and ask questions (don’t harass them — be brief and be polite). Search the SL message forums and the web in general for information. Odds are the good and the bad is always out there; if you can’t find anything the person is, most likely, disreputable or just starting out and you’re taking a chance.

III. Renting & Maintaining Private Sim Land

One option to hedge your bets with is to rent Private SIM land, rather than purchasing. When you rent, you don’t pay a large lump sum purchase price or tier fees, but you do pay a monthly rental fee. Generally this fee is based on tier plus a percentage decided by the owner. This protects you from getting scammed a large Linden payment, but may result in you paying more over time. Some Private SIM owners rent exclusively. Others sell exclusively, but several do both. When the choice is available, I prefer to rent for a few months You can always buy later once you’re comfortable with the location and the SIM owner. Rental fees can generally be paid in-game with Lindens or via a PayPal or other online payment system.

What you get:
An empty parcel with the Private SIM’s base landscape textures and the prim allowance which accompanies it.

The benefits of renting Private SIM land are:

1. Insurance against losing a large sum of money. If the land owner is unethical, or goes belly-up you are only out a month’s rent at the most and not the full purchase price of a parcel.
2. Most of the benefits of buying are also included in renting (zoning benefits, etc).
3. If you don’t like it, you have no obligation to stay and no investment to protect, simply pull your items back into inventory and find greener pastures.
4. You don’t have to have a paid account to rent Private SIM land. You can rent on a Private SIM with a free account and Linden Labs can’t say boo about it.

The problems with renting Private SIM land are:

1. You don’t own anything. When you leave you don’t get to sell the land.
2. Some Private SIM owners will cancel rentals if the SIM is in-demand and full to make way for people looking to purchase.
3. Again, you only have as much land-use rights as the SIM owner decides. Linden Labs will not get involved in any issue between you and the SIM owner you rent from.
4. Rental fees can fluctuate based on the value of the Linden.
5. Zoning restrictions apply to you as well as your neighbors. You might not be able to build that spaceship next to the log cabin on a Private SIM.

IV. Renting On A Pre-Fabricated SIM

Prefabricated SIMs are becoming increasingly popular. Generally this is a SIM that has been landscaped and developed to look like a planned community. The houses / cottages / bungalows / apartments, etc are all pre-built. You rent a designated amount of space in an existing structure for a set amount of time for a set amount of Lindens. In my experience these types of rentals are handled exclusively in-game and paid with Lindens.

A sublime example is Bill Stirling’s Nunki Kai (Nunki Kai 70, 90, 22), although repetitive grief attacks have made them go a little loopy with security lately.

What you get:
A pre-fab space (house, cabin, apartment, etc) with textures you typically cannot alter, features and landscaping you accept as-is and the prim allowance your rental agreement entitles you to.

The benefits of renting on a Pre-Fab SIM are:

1. No muss, no fuss. You don’t have to build or landscape. You simply move in yourself and your furniture, sit back, and enjoy
2. You pay in Lindens via a rental box placed somewhere on the property and don’t have to coordinate payment with a third party.

The problems with renting on a Pre-Fab SIM are:

1. Because the planners are obviously trying to accommodate as many renters at a time as they can, pre-fab SIMs can be cramped and generally lack privacy.
2. They can be awful expensive for what you get.
3. Their prim allowance is generally low.
4. Zoning restrictions are moot because you cannot build, alter, or landscape the property you rent.

If you’re someone that has been dazed and confused regarding SL land ownership and the different options out there, I hope this article has helped to clear the fog a bit. Always remember:

1. NEVER pay the owner of a lot directly if it’s for sale on Linden Land. Make them change the list price and pay the land parcel itself.

2. Private SIM land is ultimately owned by the SIM owner. If you have a falling out, Linden Labs will not help you arbitrate.

3. Always check around before you buy. Search the forums and the web for information on the SIM owner you’re thinking of buying / renting from.

4. Ask current residents if they would be so kind as to give a referral. Find out how long they’ve been there, what they like and don’t like, etc.

As always, play smart and have fun!