Parcels of land may be purchased from either Second Life^®/Linden Labs (mainland), or from Private Estate Owners (islands) like ALOHA.   All land owners in Second Life^® must also pay monthly maintenance fees called “tier fees” each month to keep their land (see our full sim description area for information on purchasing entire sims).

Because there are these monthly tier fees, and because technically the land still belongs to either Linden Labs and/or the private company owning the estate, many people feel that Second Life^® land ownership is really a form of “rent”.  When becoming a resident of ALOHA estates, you have FULL control of the parcel, and are able to resell it to recover your initial investment or to make a profit.  

A Premium account is a “support” contract with Second Life^® / Linden Labs.   To purchase land on MAINLAND you would have to first have a premium account with Linden Labs and you would pay your montly fees to this account. 

This is not necessary at Aloha.  A premium account is NOT NEEDED when purchasing land on private estate islands like ALOHA estates.  At Aloha you simply pay your tier fees in Linden dollars at the Aloha tier payment terminal (located at Aloha Island)

Don't be fooled by parcel sizes when shopping – usually it’s all about how many prims you get for the monthly tier fee.  For example, some sellers will advertise a 4096m2 plot with double prims (what they are really selling is in fact a 8192m2 plot minus half the land! 

True bonus prims happen when the sim owner designates an area on the sim where the prims will not be used at all (example: lakes, mountains etc.), and then they distribute these unused prims among the other plots for sale.   Bonus prims are rarely actually a "bonus” as you do pay more for these plots and generally get less land per prim. 

CAUTION:  Some dishonest land sellers will bump up the prim counts on sims to increase sales and prices, when in actuality there are not enough prims to satisfy these advertised counts.  Always ask WHERE the extra prims are coming from.

Many sellers list their plots of land at the price of a deposit, reservation or hold fee.   This very low price reserves the plot for a few minutes while you get your money together (prices are usually listed on the signs when you arrive).   The primary reason that they list this way vs. listing the land at the actual price, is because it gets their listing into the first few pages of the land directory.  Land sales are very competitive and sellers use this system so that their properties aren’t buried on page 20.  At ALOHA all charges are clearly stated on the signs - there are no hidden costs.  

A homestead sim is a LIGHT DUTY sim.   It has the same land size as a full sim, but only one quarter of the resources.   It has one quarter of the prims (3750) and a much lower price.  These are a wonderful solution for people who need a large land area, want complete privacy and sim control, but can`t afford a full sim.  They are not recommended for high scripts or traffic situations such as a business, but are wonderful for residences. 

No.  Only owners of FULL sims can order homestead sims.  If you dont already own a full sim, you may purchase a homestead sim through an estate land seller such as ALOHA Estates.

Mainland plots are usually provided without a covenant meaning there are no rules as to what you may build or how you may behave other than the basic Second Life terms of service agreement.    Due to this lack of rules, Mainland can sometimes look cluttered, inconsistent, and well...downright ugly. 

When compared to private estates, Mainland has more lag and performance issues. 

Mainland is supported by Linden Labs who has millions of customers to support, whereas private estates are supported by the estate company who is able to  give you more personal attention.

Most private estate islands have “covenants” that state the rules of that land (to view them right click on the ground / go to ABOUT LAND/ Covenant) . Estate lands tend to be much more beautiful and lag free because the covenant rules restrict objects and situations that cause these problems. 

Estate Islands can be very beautiful and some even have themes (tropical, medieval, role-play, underwater, outer space).    Islands with good covenant rules and great management teams will stay beautiful and lag free.  These private managment companies are able to give you more personal attention and service than Linden Labs as they have fewer customers to support.

Mainland has no rules so you can build any wild thing you like, however the down side is that you have no guarantee that your sim will stay attractive.  Tomorrow your neighbor can build any huge eyesore right at your parcel border.   But for people who want a “gritty” or “unusually creative” build, the freedom of Mainland cannot be denied.

Mainland plots are governed by Linden Labs therefore there is less risk that the company you are dealing with will rip you off.  However they aren't very flexible if you are late paying, and they don't offer financing or payment plans.  Typically their purchase prices are very much higher than estate lands.

Estate Islands are owned by private companies and just like in real life there are excellent ones and bad ones.  Linden Labs will not intervene if you have a dispute.   THE BEST WAY TO BUY ISLAND PROPERTY IS TO SPEAK WITH EXISTING OWNERS on occupied sims about their experience with that company.  Choosing a well established company is safest.  CHECK REFERENCES! 

Land Sales Search:  If you haven’t used this already, this is the best place to search for land. Simply go to the bottom of your screen and select SEARCH / LAND SALES. 

Viewing Property Lines:  This feature outlines the borders of each parcel for you.  Simply go to the top left hand corner of your screen and select VIEW / PROPERTY LINES. 

Parcel Information:  If you right click the ground on any parcel, you can select the ABOUT LAND window.  This window shows all the information for that parcel.   For example, the GENERAL tab displays the plot size, price and rightful owner information.   The COVENANT tab has the rules of the land displayed (be sure to read this carefully).  The OBJECTS tab shows the prim counts (pay particular attention to the line “Primitives Parcel Supports”, as this is the maximum number of prims you will be able to place on this parcel). 

Monthly vs. Weekly payments:  Some sellers display their tier prices in monthly format and some in weekly format.  Keep in mind that if they are displayed in weekly format,  there are 52 weeks in a year not 48!  Don’t just multiply by 4 (a common mistake) when comparing weekly to monthly rates. 

This information was provided to you free by ALOHA DEVELOPMENTS.  Obviously here at ALOHA estates we feel we are your best choice when purchasing land.   We hope you will give us an opportunity to prove it to you.   

ALOHA!
*Best Land! *Best Service!

★ Aloha lands are BEAUTIFUL!
★ Enforced, FAIR COVENANT rules ensure your land (and neighbors) stay beautiful, valuable and LAG FREE
★ CUSTOMER SATISFACTION is our main objective
★ We are IN WORLD DAILY to serve you!
★ You will get your fair FULL PRIMS – no gimmicks!
★ NO PREMIUM ACCOUNT is required
★ Convenient PAYMENT PLANS can be arranged with weekly or monthly payments
★ PROTECTED OCEAN VIEWS
★ Our sims are latest technology, and are carefully monitored by our staff to RUN AT PEAK PERFORMANCE
★ Aloha is an ESTABLISHED COMPANY with hundreds of satisfied customers and references
★ Aloha carries most land sizes 2048m2 and larger and has a FLEXIBLE UPGRADE PROGRAM
★ MANY EXTRAS may be included: waves, birds, palms, or even houses if needed
★ BUY or RENT
★ COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL lands available
★ WE CARE!