I’ve lived in The Lavender Beds, The Mist, Shirogane and The Goblet, and I’ll tell you plainly: FFXIV housing is deep, often frustrating, and hugely rewarding. I write from experience — I’ve bought plots, decorated houses, tended gardens, and joined FC workshops. Honestly, it takes time and a little obsession (in a good way).
- 🏠 Basics: Where homes are and what you need
- Sizes, space, and who they suit
- 💰 Buying land: prices, timing, strategy
- 🎨 Decorating: furniture, limits, tricks
- 🌿 Gardening: crops, soil, and crossbreeds
- 👥 Shared spaces: Free Company housing and apartments
- ⚙️ Advanced: workshops, airships, and costs
- Practical realities and one surprising insight
🏠 Basics: Where homes are and what you need
There are four residential districts: The Mist (La Noscea), The Lavender Beds (Black Shroud), The Goblet (Thanalan) and Shirogane (The Far East). Each district looks different and attracts different players, so choose for vibe and neighbors, not just price.
Requirements (short and specific): reach level 50 in any Disciple of War or Magic job; complete the Where the Heart Is quest for the district; have enough gil for purchase and construction. Apartments cost 500,000 gil (fixed).
Sizes, space, and who they suit
Houses come in small, medium, and large. Don’t pick a size just for show — think about item limits, garden plots, and how many people will use the place. Small is great for starters; large is for big groups.
| Size | Rooms (typ.) | Garden plots | Best use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 2–3 | 1–2 | Solo players, simple displays |
| Medium | 3–4 | 2–3 | Decorators, small groups |
| Large | 4–5 | 3–4 | Free Companies, ambitious builds |
💰 Buying land: prices, timing, strategy
Plot prices vary by district and server population. Typical ranges in 2025 I’ve seen: small plots 3–5 million gil; medium 10–25 million; large 30–60 million in hot districts. Construction adds roughly 450,000–3,000,000 gil depending on size.
Here’s why timing matters: when a plot opens it starts high and drops over hours on a hidden timer. You can wait and save gil, or compete at the start. Which do you prefer — speed or economy?
- Watch multiple plots at once. That increases odds.
- Join your server’s housing Discord for alerts — we found those channels invaluable.
- Have gil ready and moved into your main wallet before the buy window.
- Consider less crowded districts if you want a quick buy.
(This doesn’t always work — server waves and surprise demand ruin plans.)
🎨 Decorating: furniture, limits, tricks
You can move, rotate, and layer items precisely. I’ve spent nights clipping and positioning a single lamp — seriously. The game allows item clipping and floating (use carefully). Item limits: main rooms ~200 items, smaller rooms ~100 (varies by patch), and FC houses have larger caps.
/housingfurniture
# Place - put furniture
# Store - remove to storage
# Move - fine-tune placement
# Rotate - change orientation
Tips and why they work:
“Use Ctrl while moving items to snap to the grid. It keeps lines clean and avoids awkward overlaps.” — practical advice from my builds
- Layer rugs to create custom floors — it masks seams and helps composition.
- Light placement changes mood more than most items; plan lighting first.
- Use wall-mounted pieces to free floor space and add vertical interest.
🌿 Gardening: crops, soil, and crossbreeds
Gardening runs on real-world time: most crops take 1–10 days to grow depending on the plant and care. So yes, patience pays off. Soil grades matter: Thanalan (Grade 1), Shroud (Grade 2), La Noscean (Grade 3). Better soil = faster growth and higher crossbreed rates.
Crossbreeding can yield unique rares if you plant compatible crops next to each other and harvest at the right moment. Keep a log with planting dates and soil types (I use a simple spreadsheet). Without notes you’ll forget combos — trust me.
👥 Shared spaces: Free Company housing and apartments
FC houses give workshops, company chests, and buff stations. Apartments cost 500,000 gil and are always available — great for alts or starter homes. Free Company management matters: set permissions, decide who can place or remove items, and name housing officers. Otherwise you’ll have chaos. To be fair, many FCs handle it well; others don’t.
| Type | Typical Cost | Garden | Item Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| FC Small | 4M+ | 2 | ~400 |
| FC Medium | 17M+ | 3 | ~450 |
| FC Large | 42M+ | 4 | ~500 |
| Apartment | 500K | None | ~100 |
⚙️ Advanced: workshops, airships, and costs
Workshops let FCs build airships and submersibles for exploration missions that return rare mats and dyes. Building a workshop (medium/large FC house required) costs gil plus materials — expect around 800,000 gil plus parts, but it varies. The airship construction process has phases and needs coordination across crafters; I’ve seen projects take days to weeks depending on commitment.
Airships have component stats (Hull, Rigging, Forecastle, Aftcastle) that affect missions. Common stat priorities many players use: Surveillance, Retrieval, Speed, Range, Favor. Why? Surveillance increases discovery of new sectors, Retrieval raises material yield.
- Plan components around mission goals.
- Assign crafters to specific parts to avoid bottlenecks.
- Use mission planners or simple spreadsheets to track send-outs.
Oddly enough, smaller FCs sometimes get better returns than huge ones because they actually run missions regularly. Controversial? Maybe, but it’s true in my experience.
Practical realities and one surprising insight
Housing isn’t just cosmetic; it funds crafting, fosters community, and gives players a real outlet for creativity. Surprisingly, a well-run small house can be more valuable socially than the flashiest mansion. Depends on your niche and goals.
One counterintuitive point: you don’t need the best plot to make the best house. Good design beats expensive land most of the time. That’s a metaphor — your home is a canvas; the frame matters, but paint is everything.
Want a quick checklist before buying? Ask yourself: do I want privacy, guests, gardening, or workshops? That determines size and district. Also — and here’s the funny part — sometimes camping a plot for hours is the only option. Bring snacks!
Final caveat: some parts of the system are intentionally opaque (hidden timers, changing item caps in patches). This can be annoying and feels unfair (I’ll say it — the system can be grindy and feels gated). There are exceptions and workarounds, though. Ask your server community and check patch notes dated 2025-06-12 or later for the latest numbers.
Quick code example for tracking plant times (very basic):
date_planted = "2025-07-01"
grow_days = 7
harvest_date = "2025-07-01" + grow_days # simple note for your journal
One last thing (between us): don’t let perfection stop you. Start small, tweak often, share screenshots, and ask for feedback. We found that community critique makes designs better fast. Go build something you’ll enjoy. Seriously — go now!
