As interest in NFTs and metaverses grows, investors have more exciting and promising opportunities to join the world of cryptocurrencies. Digital real estate is a fundamentally new type of income that has not had time to reveal its full potential yet. But it is clear that the earlier you enter this area, the more benefits you can get.
Today, we will tell you how to buy a land plot in the metaverse and what digital land is all about. Digital land is by no means real. However, it has value in the long term. Let’s get started!
What Is the Metaverse and Digital Land?
The metaverse is an alternative virtual reality, often supporting VR/AR technologies, in which users can play, earn money, interact with friends or famous personalities, attend events, etc. The concept has been around for over 30 years but gained colossal popularity after Facebook announced its plans to launch a metaverse. Since then, many investors have been actively exploring opportunities for making money in the new fast-growing area.
One such opportunity is buying digital land in the metaverse. Real estate is among the most demanded asset classes in real life, and now it has also become firmly established in virtual worlds.
Digital land plots can be purchased with the currency of the specific metaverse in which they are deployed. For example, a $MANA token is a native currency for making purchases in the Decentraland metaverse. Some land plots are sold for hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars in real money.
How to Make Money in the Industry?
Here are the main reasons for investing in digital real estate in the metaverse:
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- Reselling digital land later at a higher value. The price can increase due to various factors: improvement of the site itself (interface and functionality), the neighborhood of land plots owned by famous people, and finally, the general growth in the platform’s popularity, hence the demand for its real estate.
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- Renting out and receiving passive income. Many people need digital land to advertise, hold events, and launch their projects, but they don’t want to buy it. Therefore, the rental market in this area is quite developed and in demand.
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- Placing your own advertising on the platform or other income-generating events (NFT exhibitions, etc.).
The more the metaverse evolves, the more profitable the investment becomes. The main thing is to choose a promising project.
Best Metaverse Projects with Digital Land Plots
Below is the list of leading blockchain metaverses with digital land. Let’s consider all of them in more detail!
#1 Decentraland
Decentraland is the most popular metaverse platform, which includes a huge number of districts full of advertising billboards, events, and other content from famous brands. At the same time, ordinary users, of course, can also own land parcels. Each land parcel is a LAND NFT token.
You can view available lots as a guest or using your wallet account by clicking on any land parcel. Before entering, you will need to select your avatar and other settings and agree to the license agreement terms. A guest user can run around the district and explore it but cannot perform any decisive actions.
#2 The Sandbox
The Sandbox land plots are also called LAND and are sold on the OpenSea marketplace. Just go to the Map section from the side menu to view the available territories. Clicking on a specific land plot will show information about it, a visual preview, and details about its owner.
You can buy a land plot from the Market section — select the LAND section and then click on the appropriate land plot. You will be redirected to the OpenSea website, where you can make a purchase by connecting using the Metamask wallet.
#3 CryptoVoxels
It’s a metaverse representing a huge, almost limitless world. You need to select ‘Teleport Here’ by zooming in on the map and clicking on any active point to visit it. There is an opportunity to walk around the land parcel with a character that looks like a mannequin and explore everything. There are land parcels with paintings, games, and other in-game content.
To buy a land plot, you need to go to the ‘Buy Parcels’ section in the website’s top menu, but there are only a few land parcels. You can also go to the project page on OrenSea to see the full range. Prices can vary significantly — from 1.98 ETH to 10,000 ETH.
#4 Somnium Space
Somnium Space is characterized as ‘metaverses in the metaverse.’ The project includes a full-fledged Unity SDK for game development, virtual reality support, and a functional builder. The metaverse is available on both PCs and mobile devices. Matic and OpenSea are among the project partners.
The platform is still under development and beta testing. However, it is already possible to enter it and buy land plots. The purchase/sale is carried out through Opensea since the project’s own marketplace is not yet functioning. You need to select a cube on the map and click SomniumWeb to view or OpenSea to purchase.
#5 Axie Infinity
In Axie Infinity, where you need to manage Pokemon-like pets, a section with a map and digital land are still in development. However, land plots are on free sale — you need to open the marketplace in the appropriate section of the website and then select the Land tab. Digital land plots are of different types — forest, arctic, savannah, mystic, and genesis. All are the same size but differ in their location. Each 90,601 land plot will allow you to mine the resources necessary for in-game development.
#6 Upland
Upland is an exciting blockchain project, the creators of which strive to create a digital copy of the real world. For example, they have already developed popular American cities — Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. Visually, the process resembles Google Maps — you can zoom in and walk along the streets.
And if you want to buy real estate, then here you go! It is not yet completely clear what further value the ownership of a specific land plot will bring. Many in-game aspects are still in development.
How Much Is Digital Land in Metaverses?
Size, existing buildings, location, and market demand play a role in pricing digital land plots. And if these factors change somehow, then the cost can rise or fall significantly.
For example, a lot on The Sandbox with asset ID LAND #33316 sold on December 8, 2021, for $13,140.81, but when it first sold on March 31, 2020, it only brought $38.70.
Similarly, Decentraland’s LAND #10889035741470030830827987437816582766476 originally sold for $452.98 on December 25, 2017, but resold on December 8, 2021, for $26,246.25.
These land plots are relatively common with no outstanding features. Still, there are lots sold at prohibitively high prices. For example, these are The Sandbox’s top seller in the last week, LAND #48766, which sold for $57,171.00, or Decentraland’s top seller, EST #1965, for $758,250.00.
Buying or Renting a Digital Land Plot: A Step-by-Step Guide
As a rule, a metaverse platform has its own marketplace. By connecting to it using a wallet (Metamask or similar), you can buy the lot you are interested in, which you will also have in your wallet in the form of NFT. Let’s consider the example of buying LAND in Decentraland.
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- Go to the marketplace section, which contains all objects available for purchase.
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- Click ‘Start Browsing’ to view land parcels.
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- The first tab contains land parcels. Using the switch in the left corner of the marketplace screen, you can select the display option — a visual map or a familiar list of available lots.
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- Click on the land plot of interest to view detailed information about it: cost, owner name, description, coordinates, available attractions, expiration time. By clicking on the red ‘Jump In’ button, you can go directly to the land parcel and explore it in 3D.
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- Ensure your wallet is connected to the platform and that there are enough funds (do not forget about the network fee). Click ‘Buy’ to buy land.
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- If the wallet has enough $MANA, then the wallet window will pop up, where you need to confirm the transaction.
The purchased asset will appear in the wallet as a LAND token. If you are using a Trust Wallet, LAND will appear in the Collections section.
Associated Investment Risks
Joining the metaverse by investing in digital land is a huge income opportunity and a high risk at the same time. Of course, there are many stories about how the value of a lot has skyrocketed over several months. But one should take into account the risk that the chosen metaverse at one point may become a ‘ghost town,’ and all parcels may be depreciated.
An investor must be absolutely sure that the platform will exist for a long time so that the investment will pay off over time and bring profit. However, the concept is in the early stages of development, so it is pretty unstable.
Sina Kian, VP of blockchain platform Aleo, highlights another risk — oligopoly. This is the concept of imperfect competition when the market is dominated by several large companies whose actions affect the entire market. He also said:
The most important thing that crypto offers is a potential alternative to that world, in which ownership is more decentralized.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Buying Digital Land
Key Pros:
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- Potential rental income;
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- Potential income from your projects or advertising;
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- Lots often increase in value, so this can be a promising long-term investment;
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- Simplicity, transparency, and decentralization of the process;
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- Participation in a top-end actively developing field.
Key Cons:
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- Lots may depreciate if the platform loses its relevance;
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- Due to high prices, entry into the sector is virtually unavailable to ordinary users.
Conclusion
Some of the platforms listed in this article will surely have a long and successful activity, but you can’t be sure which ones. Decentraland is one of the first digital land projects in the metaverse and promises to remain a leader for a long time to come when you consider the huge number of new investors every week.
However, this also significantly increases the cost of land parcels on the platform, making it difficult for beginners to enter. And while some platforms have a limited number of lots available, there is limitless potential for creating new land plots, each of which will have new unique features.
What is your favorite metaverse with digital land? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!
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