- For a categorical listing of all housing-related articles, see Category:Housing.
- For information on Guild Halls, see Guild Halls.
- For information on decorating, see Decorating Houses.
This article covers the general information about housing only. The last section here, titled Related Articles, provides an easy to read list format for those already familiar with the topic.
- If you have not played EQ2 much since 2010, many changes related to housing have taken place, all noted below in appropriate topic sections.
Overview[]
Each character you create in Everquest 2 can own multiple homes. As of 2014 the maximum you can own on a character is 25 houses. Every character you create can get at least one house for free (described on the Benefits of Owning a house section).
Terminology in this article includes:
- "Style" to refer to the look and layout of a house, while "type" refers to how a house is purchased or claimed.
- "Buy" is used to describe the the in-game action of obtaining the actual house, while "purchase" refers to the exchange of real-world money with SOE, now Daybreak Game Company, LLC, using Station Cash.
- "Upkeep" (or maintenance) refers to rent that is paid using in-game currency and (when required by specific housing) status points.
Easily Confused User Interface (UI) Names Described Here
There are two major UI windows described in this article in many places. To avoid confusion later in the article, both are shown here first (to the right) to help you understand which are being referred to later.
- A UI window you will see in-game primarily while outside is the Housing & Leaderboards window and, while it has many uses, only uses tied to functions like buying a Prestige House at the external portal (portal = an unusual door), moving the furniture to a new house, and using it to travel to a house you own are addressed.
- A UI window you will see in-game only while inside is the Housing window. It also has many functions inside all housing, but only uses tied to functions like setting access for other characters are addressed here.
- There is also a Player Housing Bar that is at the top of your screen. It can be hidden or shown with the following slash commands: Show: /show_window PlayerHousing.HousingBar and Hide: /hide_window PlayerHousing.HousingBar
The Benefits of Owning a House[]
Every character can have at least one house by "buying" it at no cost (described in the Buying a House section below).
Even if you have no interest in interacting with housing as gameplay, most players get the following basic benefits from owing at least one house.
Sales and Extra Storage:
- Housing serves as a place from which a player can sell their goods to other players via the broker.
- Owning any inn room or house grants a character a maximum of 6 slots on the broker. No matter how many homes a character owns that number can not be exceeded. Limitations on buying and selling via the broker may apply based on your (free or paid) membership level
- Special containers called Sales Displays can be placed in a house as furniture so other players can shop in your home. Sales Displays offer an advantage on the broker market: other players can shop from them and avoid the broker fee they would normally pay outside of your home.
- Home ownership grants a character a house vault with 6 storage slots. Like the broker, owning multiple homes on one character will not increase the number of house vault slots that character has.
- Housing is also an excellent way to unclog the limited space in the bank, by displaying house items like those awarded when you complete Lore and Legend quests, Heritage Quests, and Book Quests.
Additional Travel Options:
- The Housing & Leaderboards now allows you to enter any house from any location within a (major) city that has player-housing. You must have a minimum of Visitor access (described below). The process of doing this is described on the Housing & Leaderboards page.
- Many players use House Portals to turn one or more houses they own into a centralized "hub" for travel, allowing them to travel between cities (including those of the opposite alignment), to travel all of the world using a variety of house items for travel. The most popular house-related travel item is Magic Door to the Guild Hall, that allows you to instantly return to your guild hall without using the (spell) normally used to do so.
Housing as Gameplay[]
- Only the general topic of furniture and decorating is touched on in this article, because this article is an on the general topic of housing.
There are numerous reasons players may choose to own a house, but many do because the robust housing in EQ2 has unleashed the creativity of players of who enjoy all types of game-play. Over the years owning a house has gone well beyond the concept of "making a nice home" and grown into an activity enjoyed by those who need a break from the everyday "grind" that can occur with constant adventure quests or working on a tradeskill.
Housing as form of gameplay is primarily tied to the concept of "publishing" a house using the Ratings tab in the Housing & Leaderboards window. Published houses may be simple homes that have been artfully decorated, while others may be complex structures built from scratch using building blocks, like pyramids or spaceships.
Publishing a house is covered on the page about decorating houses.
Housing is a popular space for gameplay with players who enjoy roleplaying (RP), because it can be customized to suit RP interests and needs. While RP can occur in any location throughout the larger game world of EQ2, housing used to this purpose allows player to create spaces that suit a specific purpose, like restaurants, bars, barracks, and more.
Housing Types[]
Housing has changed radically since launch. At one time the key distinguishing factors were tied to the costs to buy a house, the number of slots in granted on the broker and number of house vault slots, and the cost paid for upkeep (a concept like "rent", described as upkeep because it can comprise both coin an status).
These factors used to be determined by the location and number of rooms a house had. All of those differences have been equalized to some degree by the addition of a new type of housing; for this reason it can be said that Everquest 2 has two main types of housing.
Major Changes Since 2010 Include:
- The major factor that makes each type different is that one is housing with upkeep costs, while the other is housing without upkeep costs.
- All houses now grant each character that owns at least one (of any type, size, or location) a maximum of 6 slots on the broker and 6 slots in a house vault.
- A new means to travel to them and interact with them was also added, known as the Housing & Leaderboards. The Housing & Leaderboards rendered the concept of counting rooms obsolete to a large degree; while Standard housing still has rooms, new rooms and (in some locations) balconies were added.
- The Leaderboard (linked above) organizes housing by its relative size in comparison to all other housing, rather than by the number of rooms.
Standard Housing[]
Standard Housing is primarily distinguished by the fact that it is housing with upkeep costs. Standard Housing which is purchased with a mix of coin (plat, gold, etc) and, in some cases Status points. All require weekly upkeep (or "rent") to access over time, though you will never owe back rent or lose the items inside if you skip paying "rent".
- The major advantage is that it's easy for any player to buy or obtain, because you buy it with standard in-game currencies, like coin (gold, silver) and (in some cases) with status points. It requires upkeep (like "rent") but it's a nominal cost that you can pay only when you want to enter the house or allow others to do so.
- Upkeep can be paid up to 12 weeks (84 real-world days) at a time or added to Escrow. Escrow acts like a means to store upkeep for future use, which is not consumed until you pay upkeep from Escrow.
- Standard Housing can be found in all of the major cities in Norrath, the world of EQ2.
- Standard housing is typically styled like a real-world home, with a mix of rooms and (in large homes) a balcony. There are numerous floorplans at various costs in different locations within each city.
- For a list of homes by cost and location, see the Housing: Availability by City page.
Prestige Housing[]
Prestige housing is obtained by various means, but is distinguished by the fact that it is is housing without upkeep costs. After you obtain a deed and buy the house, you never have to pay any upkeep in coin or status points.
- The major advantage of this type is that, because it never has any upkeep costs of any kind, you and anyone you grant access to (described below) can always enter it.
- It can be more complicated to obtain than Standard Housing; some are sold on the Marketplace, but there are many other ways to obtain it (covered on the page about it).
- This type of housing also allows players to use a house portal to "link" multiple houses together.
- Most prestige houses are based on zones found in the world that have been modified. They vary greatly in style and size. Due to the size and (nearly)"blank slate" nature of many of these houses, they are highly easy to use when and if you want to build unique structures from scratch.
Buying a House[]
An overview of buying, owning, and relinquishing each type of housing is covered here, rather than every detail about each type. This is because both types have seen numerous changes over the years and the details and options for both types grew exponentially. If you want more details about each type (Standard or Prestige) click on the links in this article at any time.
To buy a house in a city of good or evil alignment, the player must be a citizen in a city of the same alignment. Because it is now possible for each character to own multiple houses, it is not necessary to switch citizenship if the houses you buy share that character's alignment. In other words, a citizen of Gorowyn can own one (or more) in that city as well as Neriak and Freeport.
In order to buy any house, you need to travel to the entrance and right click on the door or, in the case of Prestige housing, a column shown on the page about that housing type that acts like a door. Before you buy any house, you can tour it to get a sense of the floorplan and the other details that might interest you, like any windows it may have or what (if any) access to an outdoor area it may have.
Every character you create can "buy" a house for free
The quest First Time Buyer directs you to the door of a small (2 room) house and it gives you some starter furniture as a reward. The upkeep for it is a mere 5s per week when (and if) you choose to pay it. Details on upkeep and how to get additional quests for small houses is covered in the Standard Housing article.
Buying a Standard House[]
- See also: Housing: Availability by City
Some housing is available for purchase in two versions: one with a pure coin cost and one with a mixed coin/status cost. For example, an apartment in Irontoe's East has two price options:
- Non-status version: 24g to buy + 1g per week in upkeep.
- Status version: 14g 22,000 status to buy + 60s 3,000 status per week in upkeep.
The weekly status cost for the status version of this housing can be reduced further if you buy or quest for furniture and house items.
- The walls and flooring in Freeport and Qeynos houses can be changed after you purchase them by clicking on the walls and floors; Examples can be found on the Standard Housing page.
Standard Housing Upkeep
All standard houses require the payment of weekly (real-time) upkeep. This is normally a fraction of the cost of the house. Up to 12 weeks can be paid in advance. Upkeep can consist of standard coin currency (gold, silver, etc.) only or coin and status points.
Failing to pay upkeep has two effects.
- No one, including your character, will be able to enter the house.
- Items in sales displays will no longer list your address on the broker because shoppers can not enter it.
You never have to pay "back rent" if you miss an upkeep payment. Once upkeep is paid you will have access to the house again. Once you own a house it will belong to that character unless you Relinquish it. Houses do not depreciate or vanish over time like they did in Star Wars Galaxies.
Buying a Prestige House[]
- You must have a deed in your inventory.
- You will right click on the deed to redeem (or activate) access to the house before you can buy it.
- You must go to a portal location in South Freeport or South Qeynos to buy the house and locate it on a list. It will have the same name that was on the deed (eg. Everfrost Summer Home).
How to get a deed:
- If you complete daily tasks listed in you quest journal and earn Loyalty Point Tokens you can buy prestige homes from Noble Tark Validus.
- If you bought a Collector's Edition of EQ2, attended Fan Faire, or you qualify for a veteran's reward, you must type /claim to open the Veteran's Reward interface and choose to claim a deed so it will appear in your character's inventory.
- If you have a loot card for a Tax-Free House and you have redeemed it in the Legends of Norrath interface, you must type /claim so it will appear in your inventory.
- If you purchased a prestige house using Daybreak Cash from Marketplace, the deed will be in your character's inventory.
For a list of available styles on this wiki, see Prestige Housing. You can also check the Marketplace while you are logged into the game, since new ones are often added. In some cases, new housing of this type might be released when there is a holiday event, like Frostfell or Nights of the Dead.
Locating Your House[]
With the addition of multiple house ownership, the potential to forget where your character owned a house or houses was a problem. Don't worry if you forget where you own a house. You can look at a listing of all of the houses you own by pressing C to open the Character window. After the window is open click on the side-tab labeled Housing and you will see a list of all of the houses that character owns.
Renaming Your House[]
Any house you own can be renamed. This feature is both functional and fun. As shown in the image above, renaming makes it easy to remember what you may be using a house for or a theme you've created for the space. Common reasons you may do this include using it for storage or placing a sales display for broker sales.
You may also choose to rename your house purely for the sake of fun. This is common with players who roleplay. In many cases, housing is used to host events for roleplaying and may be renamed to make it suit the purpose. Common themes include bars and restaurants.
When other players travel to the house to visit it by traveling to the door, they will still need to find it under the name of the character that owns it, but once they enter, text shows on their screen that announces the renamed the location. For example, they may go to the door of (your) character Joe and choose to enter it, but on entering they will see the message "Den of Ultimate Doom," (if that is the name you set for it).
To set the name of your character's house:
- (An image of a house in the process of being renamed is shown above.)
To start, you must open the House window (eg. click the House icon in the shortcut window shown above or type /house). Before it is renamed, it will have your character's name, followed by the generic name of the house. To the right of that info, you'll see an Edit button. In the example image on the right the edit button has already been clicked and the words, "Type House Name Here" have been typed into the field you'll use to rename your house. Click the Save button (in the same place as Edit was prior) and your new house name will be saved. If the example shown here had been saved, anyone entering would see the words Type Your Name Here as a part of the message when they zone in.
Traveling to Homes You Own[]
Travel to the Location[]
There are numerous way to get to homes you own. The "old fashioned way" is to go to the city the house is in, go to the door, right click the door and choose enter from the options.
Using the Housing & Leaderboard Window[]
The new, fast and easy way uses the Housing & Leaderboards window. If you are in any major city, you can access any house your character owns by:
- Pressing C to open the Character window.
- Click on the side-tab for Housing to view the list of your houses.
- Choose the house on the list and hit Access. This will open the Housing and Leaderboards window.
- If the house is one without any upkeep costs, you'll instantly enter it.
- The cities you can do this from are The City of Freeport, The City of Qeynos, Neriak, Kelethin, Gorowyn, or New Halas.
- This can also be done from the docks of The Commonlands and Antonica
- The image of the Character window above (with an example of a renamed house on the list) shows the shortcut button, labeled Access that opens the Housing and Leaderboard window, so you can enter instantly.
- At times, you may need to pay upkeep before you can enter any Standard Housing you own or have been granted access to before using any of the methods described above. Due to an occasional (program) bug, it may be necessary to close and reopen the Leaderboards window to enter if you have to pay upkeep first.
From A Guild Hall[]
The Portal to Housing is an option amenity that can be purached by a guild leader and placed in the Guild Hall.
- If you are in a guild with this amenity, locate the blue swirl (pictured in the section) and click on it.
- The amenity will open a list of all homes you own or homes you have been granted access (described below) to by the owners. Choose the location you want to enter and you will be ported there. Once again, Standard Housing may require the payment of upkeep before you can enter.
Furniture and Decorating[]
- See also: List of House Items
For more detailed info on how to place items in a house, see Decorating Houses.
Due to the robust housing features and functions, housing has become quite popular since launch. While several furniture items may be purely decorative, quite a few are also highly functional.
- If you own housing with status upkeep costs it can be used to reduce or completely eliminates the status upkeep cost. This feature of furniture is known as Rent Status Reduction and only applies to Standard Housing.
- You can open the examine window to see the amount of status reduction furniture may offer. To examine an item, right click on it in the broker window or while it is in your inventory.
Basic Housing Features[]
Storage[]
All houses have 6-slot vaults. This is a bank-like storage option, you can access your vault from the inside of any house or guild hall. Once you are in a house, right click on the door of the house. The vaults can be filled with strong boxes or backpacks in the same way as a bank slot.
- This is a change from the older system in which the size of a house determined the number of slots allotted for storage using the house vault.
- Owning multiple houses does not grant a character additional house vault storage.
Broker Slots[]
All houses have give the owner 6 broker (vendor) slot on the broker. As special container-type that functions much like furniture can be placed in player housing to allow other to visit the house and buy without paying a broker fee. For an overview of how this works see, the information on the page about the broker. If you are already familiar with the concept, you can read up on various sales displays that have different advantages and disadvantages (like how many items they hold).
- The freedom to sell items on the broker is tied to your membership level. All Access (subscription) players have full access to sell (and buy from) the broker, while Silver members can only buy and must use special tokens. See the page about Free-To-Play for details if you're unfamiliar or in case anything changes.
- This is a change from the older system in which the size of a house determined the number of slots allotted for broker slots tied to housing.
- Owning multiple houses does not grant a character additional house broker slots.
Access[]
There are several levels of access to a player house, each level governs the actions of a visiting player. With the exception of the Owner Access level, there is no limit on the number of characters (or players) that you can set access for in your house. Access levels can only be set from inside the house by right-clicking on the door or typing /house.
- Owner: Your character, the owner of the house. Only the character that owns the house can relinquish the ownership of the house or move all of its contents to a new house.
- Trustee: Trustees have almost the same access as the owner. Trustees can place items, move items, and interact in alter the house like the owner with the exception of picking up No-Trade items specific to the owner (such as rewards from heritage quests). This level of access also prevents Trustees from removing No-Trade from the house entirely. Trustee can pack all of your items in the Moving Crate (described below) but can not complete the process of moving items from one house to another. Trustees can also pay your upkeep.
- Friend: Friends may enter your house, view your decorations, and interact with some of your items (they may take food from your Frostfell servings , for instance). They can also move items around in your house, but they cannot place new items or take items out of your house. Friends can pack all of your items in a Moving Crate too!
- Visitor: Visitors may enter your house, view your decorations, and interact with some of your items (they may take food Frostfell servings, for instance). They can not pick items up or move them. You have the option to set this as the general status for all players that want to visit your house. If you place a sales display in your house this is the automatic setting for all players.
- None: This prevents players from entering your house. You have the option to set this as the general status for the house so that no one can visit your home.
Relinquishing the Ownership of a House[]
Prior to 2011 players could only own one house per character. To allow players to move from one house to a new house, they had to relinquish the one they currently owned.
Even with a 25 house ownership limit per charcater, there may be occasions when you want to relinquish a house in Freeport to buy one in Qeynos or vice versa. For example, perhaps you roleplay and your once goodie-two-shoes high elf is now a ardent fan of the Overlord, so she wants to pack up and leave Qeynos forever!
- With the addition of multiple house ownership on each character, this is no longer necessary when you want to move if you unless you've reached the max of 25 homes and want to give up a standard house so you can buy something completely new.
- You are the only one who can relinquish a house owned by one of your characters and you must be logged in as the character who owns the house to do so.
- If it is a prestige house you will not get a deed back, which means you can not transfer a deed to another character on your account.
- Once a deed is used it's permanently bound to the character that used it, but you can go to the Qeynos/Freeport Housing Portal, select that same house and click to BUY it (which costs zero coin)
Steps to Relinquish House Ownership[]
You can relinquish ownership by doing the following:
- Go to the (outside) front door and right-clicking on it
- Select Move Items, then select another house you own to send this house's contents to. This will change the "Move Items" button into the "Relinquish House" button.
- Click on the Relinquish House button.
- The previous step will open a new window in which you must type the name of the character who owns the house to finish.
Moving to a New House[]
EQ2 has a system that allows you to move all of the contents of a house very easily. Instead of picking up all of your items individually and transporting to a new location, everything can be packed and moved automatically. Before you can do this you must own at least one more house.
How to Move to a New House
- Go to the outside of the door to the house that you want to move furniture out of, to start the process.
- Right click on the door and choose the Access option from the list. Doing so will open the Housing and Leaderboard window (shown in the image to the right).
- Click on the Move Items button and a new window will open that lists all of the houses you own (This step is also shown in the image to the right).
- Choose the house you want to automatically send your furniture to by clicking on its address in the list.
- Click OK to complete the process and send your furniture to the new house.
When this process is complete you can then travel to the house you've moved everything to and enter it. You will see a box in your house called a "Moving Crate". The Moving Crate will hold all of the furniture you moved until you click on it and remove each item to place it again.
- Note: Trustees that do not own a home (described in the Access section) can NOT use the Move button from the outside. At the most, they can pack all the items in the house in a Moving Crate.
Related Articles[]
For your convenience, a list of related links is provided below. Many were linked above, but this list will make them easy to find later.
- Standard Housing and Prestige Housing are the two major categories of housing.
- Decorating Houses will help you learn to place and move things in your house.
- Housing & Leaderboards provides details about the UI window you will use the most when interacting with housing and it offers additional options to travel between cities. The Leaderboard is also a way to see the design work of your fellow players or share your own work with the community.
- Housing Item Limit and Building Blocks explains what items count is and what building blocks are for new players.
- For new players:
- Broker and Sales Display - with housing, these combine to offer an edge in the market.
- House Vault which behaves like a small, personal version of a bank, only accessed inside a house.