A sudden fascination in real-estate marketing is skyrocketing that investors are willing to pay millions, but the twist is that the land is entirely virtual.
Virtual Lands in the Metaverse
As the real-estate market soars, a sudden interest in a land rush is taking place due to the Covid pandemic, urging some investors to purchase plots of land that do not exist on Earth.
In fact, the properties may not even exist in the first place.
That's because the land is located online, found in a set of virtual realms called the metaverse.
Facebook's announcement that it is going all-in on virtual reality has caused plot prices to soar by 500% in recent months. The company even changed its name to Meta Platforms to reflect its commitment to the new technology.
People use avatars to interact in a cartoon-like manner in this virtual world, similar to what they do in real-time multiplayer video games.
But that's not the fun part. The metaverse is a depiction of what your real-world experiences would have looked like with virtual lands and all.
These people gain accessibility in these worlds by computer, but Meta and other tech companies are set to build immersive gadgets to make it feel real. Meta's virtual reality goggles called Oculus is one example.
"You can go to a carnival, you can go to a music concert, you can go to a museum," said Andrew Kiguel, CEO of Tokens.com, a company that invests in non-fungible tokens and metaverse real estate.
Also Read: The Metaverse Explained: What It Is, and Why You Should Care
Would you Invest in the Metaverse?
Besides the situation brought about by the pandemic, the metaverse is just one click away when people want to mingle with others. Thus, attracting more investors.
Inventories of digital assets are expected to rise to $1 trillion in the near future, according to a report by crypto asset manager Grayscale.
Furthermore, investors like Token.com recently secured an approximately $2.5 million patch of land located in one of the most popular worlds in the metaverse, Decentraland.
Then Janine Yorio's Republic Realm dropped a whopping $4.3 million on a plot of land in another popular metaverse world called 'Sandbox.'
Not just that, even celebrities and artists are in, too.
Top artists, like Ariana Grande, perform as avatars in the virtual world. Paris Hilton even hosted a New Year's Eve party at her own island using her avatar.
We’re having a party in the #metaverse! Join me at 11pm ET and PT on #NYE this Friday in #ParisWorld 🥰🥰 https://t.co/fDZMmfYzQM 🎉🎉🥳 @djskee @Roblox @dash_radio pic.twitter.com/egLs8pJDYn
— ParisHilton (@ParisHilton) December 30, 2021
Although people- even celebrities- seem to believe that the real world will ultimately shift to virtual ones, some are still not convinced.
Professor and Director for Real Estate Theory and Practice Mark Stapp says he would not put his money into something "that isn't tied to reality."
Yorio also agreed, warning that digital real estate investment is a risky venture.
In the end, it's up to everyone how they will spend their money, but it's also up to them how to endure the consequences.
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Written by Thea Felicity
