Beginner Landowners FAQ

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This article answers some general questions about owning land in the Second Life world. Land inworld in Second Life can be owned in three varieties:

Mainland
Islands (Private Regions)
Openspaces

Why would I want to own land?

Residents use their land to build homes and businesses, hold events, create attractions like zoos and carnival rides, build multi-leveled games — basically anything they can imagine. Also, if you own land and other residents hang out there, you can earn traffic (which will show your location higher in the find). Particularly impressive or innovative locations may be nominated to appear in the Second Life Showcase on our website.

Are there special conditions I have to meet in order to be able to purchase land?

To purchase Mainland land in Second Life, you must have a Premium account, current payment information on file, and your account must be in good standing (i.e., not delinquent). You may also be required to have a clean disciplinary record. Linden Lab reserves the right to refund your purchase if you do not meet our minimum criteria for land ownership.

To rent land on a Private Region, you must comply with the rules established by the Estate Owner. It's possible to purchase an entire Private Region for yourself, which would make you the Estate Owner for that Region. Note that purchasing land on a Private Region, even if you own all of the land on the Region, is not the same as being the Estate Owner for that Region.

Note: If you wish to buy a Private Region and you are a Teen Second Life Resident, you may not use the Land Store. You must complete the Special Region Order process.

What else do I get with a Premium account?

Access to Live Chat and Ticket Support
Initial grant of L$1,000. The Premium bonus is for new Premium accounts and for accounts wich upgrade from Basic to Premium. (See also: How long does it take to get the L$1000 bonus after I sign up for a Premium account?)
Weekly stipend of L$300 (even if you don't log in)
The ability to purchase a 512 square meter plot of land on the mainland before any maintenance fees kick in

Is there a discount if I sign up for a longer period?

Yes, it's US$7.50/month if billed quarterly (US$22.50) or US$6.00/month if billed annually (US$72.00).

Does this mean I've got 512 square meters of land waiting for me somewhere inworld as soon as I upgrade to a Premium account?

No; this means that as a Premium account holder, you have the ability to own 512 square meters initially. You still have to find and purchase your own land. See this video tutorial for a friendly walk-through on your first land purchase:

How do I own land on the mainland?

Land on the mainland is owned by Governor Linden and is auctioned off as it becomes available. Frequently asked questions (and their answers) about buying land at auction are answered by the Second Life Land Auction FAQ. Land owned on the mainland is also subject to the Land Use Fee (also known as a Tier Fee), which is a monthly charge in addition to Premium membership. Land use fees are billed based on the peak amount of land held during your previous 30 day billing cycle.

Mainland Land Use Fees (Land Tier)

You can own as much land as you choose; change the amount of land you own and your monthly fee will adjust accordingly. Your bill at the end of the month is based on the peak amount of land you owned during the previous 30 days.

The chart below shows the monthly cost of owning the following additional amounts of land beyond the initial 512 square meters covered by your Premium account. It also shows how many objects you can build on that amount of land.

For example: If you pay a total of US$14.95 ($9.95 for Premium and $5 for extra land), then you can own a total of 1024 square meters and use up to 234 prims.

Monthly Land Fee⁽¹⁾	Additional Land (over 512m²)	Parcel Size (m²)	Max Prims⁽²⁾
US$5	1/128 Region	512	117
US$8	1/64 Region	1,024	234
US$15	1/32 Region	2,048	468
US$25	1/16 Region	4,096	937
US$40	1/8 Region	8,192	1,875
US$75	1/4 Region	16,384	3,750
US$125	1/2 Region	32,768	7,500
US$195	Full Region	65,536	15,000

⁽¹⁾ Each month, you'll bill at the lowest tier that is equal to, or greater than, the maximum amount of land you held in the month prior.

⁽²⁾ These prim limits are based on maximum amount of land you may own in this tier. If you own less, the values will be different. Your prim limits are always (total m2 owned in this Region) * 15,000 / 65,536 , rounded down.

What happens to my tier if I own more than a full Region?

Any tier beyond the first full Region is assigned in half-Region increments at a rate of US$97.50 per half Region. A higher level appears in your Land Use Fees when you upgrade beyond a full Region on the Mainland. If you sell the land and move back to a tier of one full Region or below, the system automatically tiers you down.

Warning: Make sure to contact Concierge to set your tier status correctly if you tier up beyond one full Region, then tier down to one full Region or less, then intend to have more than one full Region again. Otherwise, you won't receive a notice the next time you tier up beyond one full Region.

Note: Private Region (island) fees are charged independently, and do not affect your land tier rating.

Can I buy land before I sign up for or increase a monthly tier fee?

Yes. You'll receive a message that you need to upgrade to Premium and/or approve a higher monthly land use fee. Read this message carefully, as it details what membership you'll be using, and how much extra you'll pay per month. Make sure you approve how much you'll pay before you hit OK.

Where can I see my current land holdings and my current land use fee?

You can view your current land holdings and land use fees on your Dashboard by clicking Land Manager on the left to expand it.

What happens if I buy land but don't sign up for Premium (or a higher tier if I need one)?

If you purchase land inworld and your account is not a Premium account (including if you're a trial), you'll receiving a message that purchasing this land will upgrade you to a Premium membership. If you purchase land that brings your total holdings over your current land tier (see the table above) you'll get a message informing you that you're about to approve higher monthly land use fees. These messages always state in US$ the additional amount you're agreeing to pay. If you approve the land purchase, you are approving the additional monthly fees, so read carefully! If you have any problems, you should file a support ticket, but realize that we cannot provide refunds for land you purchase, but don't want.

Can I join parcels of land across Region boundaries?

It is currently impossible to join parcels that span more than one Region. For more information about this, see "How to join and split land".

Can I buy this land I saw on the mainland?

Generally speaking, land on the mainland will need to be made available to all Residents via an auction. We're not typically able to just sell land to the first person that asks about it. Exceptions can be made if the plot is relatively small and the requestor has a logical claim to it (for example, if a thin strip extends into an owned plot or a plot is completely surrounded). Land that is owned by Governor Linden and named "Protected Land" will not generally be sold to Residents or terraformed.

What is an island?

An island, or Private Region, is a 256mX 256m piece of standalone virtual land. Regions run on a single CPU, and have the ability to support 15,000 primitives. Private Regions have their own controls. These controls allow you to set ground textures and give you more terraforming leeway, allow and restrict access to the Region, manage environmental controls such as time of day, and agent count (the numbers of Residents allowed on the Region), along with many other levels of control not available to mainland parcel owners. Private Regions are managed through the control umbrella of an Estate. Estates can have one or more Regions in them, and are not necessarily contiguous, although they can be. Estates cannot have more than one owner, although they can have alternate payors.

More information on Private Regions can be found in the Private Region (Island) FAQ.
More information on Estates can be found in the Estate FAQ.

Can someone place a Region next to me without my permission?

The Land Store will not allow anyone else to place another island touching yours (even diagonally) without your permission.

What is the difference between an Estate and a Private Region?

An Estate is a collection of one or more Private Regions managed by one rule set. A Region is 16-acre square of land on the grid that belongs to an Estate. Region names are always shown at the top of the screen in the viewer. Estate names are only visible in the Region/Estate window.

Can I name the Region whatever I want?

See the Guidelines for Private Region Naming.

How long does it take for my Region to go up?

Once you have completed the process, your Private Region should go up within 30 minutes of checkout. Occasionally, your order may be delayed due to grid issues or hardware supply. If your purchase has gone through and the Region isn't up within the hour, please contact the Concierge Team or file a ticket via the Support Portal. You will also receive an email letting you know there will be a delay if there is no hardware available.

What is an Openspace? What is a Homestead?

Openspaces and Homesteads are explained in the Private Region Types article.

Why do I have to be an existing Region owner to own an Openspace or Homestead?

Openspaces and Homesteads are offered to allow Estate owners to create open ocean or land in and around their Regions in the same way that the Linden mainland does. They are intended for "light use" rather than heavy residential areas with large amounts of content. While they can and have been used in other ways, they are not recommended for any other purpose.

What is the Land Store for?

The Land Store allows you to buy Private Regions and Openspaces via our secure website.

Are there terms or conditions involved?

By purchasing a Private Region, you are agreeing to pay the set up and monthly service fees for as long as you own it. You are also agreeing to a restocking fee if you cancel your order.

When will I be charged?

You will be charged the setup fee once the order is completed. Monthly fees begin 30 days from the date you complete your purchase.

What is a Concierge user?

A Concierge-level Resident pays over USD$125 of land maintenance fees per month (mainland or Region). For example, a Resident owning one Region is a Concierge Resident because the monthly maintenance fee they pay is more than US$125.00.

Can I transfer land between two accounts that I own?

Yes, but the process is somewhat indirect: One of your accounts will need to sell the land to the other account for L$0. Keep in mind that both accounts must be Premium accounts, and the account that ends up owning the land needs to have the correct land tier amount. Also, be sure that when you set the land for sale, you set it for the specific account you want to end up owning it — otherwise, anybody could theoretically swoop in and take the land you wanted your other account to have.

What if I don't want to own land?

The Basic account is the plan for you. Without having to pay any money, a Basic membership allows you access to Second Life at any time.