If you are new to Upland, new city releases are exciting, and in Dale the Llama’s opinion the best part of the game! Imagine having the ability to buy your favorite property – a downtown skyscraper, your favorite restaurant or bar, a big mall, etc. You just have to get there first! It is a race!
Even if you are a brand new player who has reached Uplander status (less than 100,000 UPX net worth) you have a unique opportunity to start off with fast growth during a new city release by minting FSA properties. New players who have invested more than 100,000 UPX and reached pro level have not need to worry. There are more than enough quality properties to mint that are not FSA. The number of FSA properties in a city vary from around 15%-70%, where only in beginner cities are the amount of FSA properties more than 33%. This post will go into detail the different strategy for new players who have never participated in a city release – what to expect, and how to set yourself up for growth!
Whatever your strategy is, make sure to avoid these common mistakes during a new city launch! Also, make sure you take our quiz to make sure you are adequately prepared. Dale recommends reading this page that describes the entire new city release process and clarifies a number of frequently asked questions about the topic before moving forward. If this is your first city release, make sure to learn how to prepare for it.
A few basic things to know beforehand:
FSA properties (Fair Start Act). This can be a double edged sword. On one hand, it is in place so that new players have an equal opportunity to buy properties all over the map, including collections. These are properties that the big whales can’t buy, but many are willing to pay higher markups for collection FSA properties. The downside of FSA properties is that you may only sell 2 of them per calendar week, and holds true even after you pass the 100,000 net worth and make it to a pro. Click here to read more about these properties. You can only mint 3 FSA properties each day, and a total of 30 over your lifetime. These restrictions make it difficult to amass a large amount of valuable FSA properties, and selling them off will also take several weeks.
Vanilla mode. All cities have collections. An example of a collection is holding 3 properties in the same collection neighborhood or specific street. The collections are always predetermined prior to a city release. Vanilla mode means that these collections are only revealed after the city has been released, and the properties in that neighborhood have been minted. This makes the release more interesting as you must familiarize yourself with the city and guess as to where collections might be. Read more about vanilla releases here, and read our top 5 reasons why we prefer vanilla releases.
You must have reached uplander status (10,000 UPX net worth ($10)) in order to sell properties. The easiest way to become an uplander is to buy UPX. For the average player, the best value to set you up for fast growth during a new city release would be to take advantage of the best starter value promotion when creating your Upland account.
Watch this video for more insight from YK2012. As an Executive he has participated in over 20 city releases.
The following strategies are primarily for players with a net worth of less than 100,000 UPX. Players that have a larger starting net worth or liquidity for a new city release have near infinite options as how to prepare to mint properties in a new city. Each city is unique, and provides many different alternatives depending on a players long term strategy and liquidity. The Upland Guide can work with you to create tailor made strategies (you always need a plan B for new city releases) that will set you up for success in the Metaverse. Email us to inquire about our services.
Don't focus on FSA properties
Don't focus solely on FSA properties. With a limit of minting 3 every day, and the best properties being minted within the first few minutes of a city release, there isn't necessarily a huge advantage in being able to mint FSA properties. Focus on minting properties you want, and if it happens to be an FSA property - great. If you happen to miss out on the city release by a few hours, this limit to minting FSA properties will likely mean that there will still be properties available for you to mint.
Mint FSA properties in popular neighborhoods
Uplanders and Visitors are the only players who can mint FSA properties. Another restriction is that a player can only mint 3 FSA properties each day. During a new city release new players must strategize over what FSA properties they wish to attempt to mint. Neighborhoods that have the largest base price (and therefore likely the fewest number of FSA properties) likely indicate that the neighborhood is a popular place in real life, and that it will be in high demand in Upland as well. There is a high chance that these neighborhoods also will sell out quite quickly, and prices might rise as there might be a high demand for them. There might be speculation that this neighborhood might be a future collection. If you are able to mint a cheap FSA property in this neighborhood you may be able to sell for a nice profit. (It is likely that visitors won't have enough UPX to mint properties in the most sought after neighborhoods due to the large base prices). Learn more about these base prices and understanding the property card.
If you are able to mint 3 FSA properties in such a neighborhood, this may be the best way to ensure fast growth. If you have sufficient UPX to be able to mint several properties in such a neighborhood, it may make sense to target non-FSA properties first, as there are no restrictions on how many you can mint and sell. For this reason, we recommend recommend starting with the most amount of UPX possible while remaining under 100,000 UPX. (see the best value bonus when signing up for Upland with the Upland Guide).
If you had limited supply of UPX but still managed to get a valuable property, you can try to sell it for a nice fast profit enabling you to mint more properties if you choose.
Become an FSA seller
If you have a limited amount of UPX, and you won't be able to best capitalize on the method above, there are lots of players who are interested in purchasing specific properties that they are unable to due to the fact that they are FSA properties. The reasoning behind this is that some players are looking to purchase entire streets or neighborhoods. They will have to buy those FSA properties on the secondary market. Join the Upland discord server to search out these FSA buyers. Even before the city is released, there is opportunities for you to make a guaranteed sale. Negotiate a sale price on a specific property that they are looking to buy. This ensures that you make a sale before buying the property. It's best to negotiate for larger properties because there is a restriction of FSA property sales. Only 2 FSA properties can be sold each calendar week (resets at 12AM Monday UTC), and you can only mint 3 daily. Read more about the reasoning why a player would want to buy an FSA property on the secondary market.
Play the floor
When a new city is released, players often target to mint the smallest, and cheapest properties first.
When people search for properties in a specific neighborhood, many are looking to buy the cheapest property. These small properties might have the cheapest resale value, however they may have the largest markup. If the collections are known prior to release, it is best to find such areas in collection neighborhoods, as the markup there will be much higher. For this strategy it is best to have maximum liquidity without going over 100,000 UPX, as you will be unable to purchase FSA properties once you reach that threshold. If you have yet to sign up for upland, do so while taking advantage of the best starter value promotion you will be able to maximize the number of properties you can mint. Depending on the city, it can be possible to mint over 40 properties with this method.
With this strategy it is extra important to remember that you can only sell 2 FSA properties each week. If the FSA properties you minted cannot bring you huge profits, it could take you quite some time to grow your net worth. Note that even selling a 2000 UPX mint property for 5x is an excellent profit, however being limited to two each week may not enable you to grow fast. If you miss out on the new city release even by a few minutes, you might find that all the best properties have already been minted. By looking at the cheapest properties in the city, may be able to sell at that price if people are looking to buy the cheapest properties. If you are able to mint properties cheaper than that, you will be able to make a profit and begin to slowly grow your net worth.
HODLer (Hold on for Dear Life)
You are in no rush to sell your properties, and you don't see a need to play the flipping game at the moment. If you find a property you like or has real world relevance or sentimental value, hold on to it. It's possible that later on you can sell it for a larger markup than trying to make a quick buck. If this is your primary strategy and you are looking to own many properties, you should expect to invest money into this game. When joining Upland, don't forget to take advantage of our promotions.
Set up treasure hunting network
Treasure hunting is a great way to earn UPX and maybe even spark. Before deciding if you are planning to set up a treasure hunting network, make sure you familiarize yourself with how to treasure hunt, and the most important things to know before hunting. If you decide you want to set up a treasure hunting network, it would be best to mint smaller and cheaper properties. Before the release, you should study the map of the city and create a plan of where you want to own your properties. Some areas are likely to have high prices, and even higher ones on the secondary market. If you require properties in those areas for your hunting you should focus on minting there first. Those properties will sell out and increase in price very quickly. Properties in other neighborhoods might require you to buy properties off the secondary market. Your best bet might be from a new player who is able to mint FSA properties. As for neighborhoods that are least attractive it should have relatively reasonable markup prices on the secondary market if you find that the city sells out quickly.
Hybrid
There are pros and cons to each of the strategies listed above. Feel free to use them when and where you see fit.
Important information during the launch. Sends: Keep in mind the number of sends you have. You can only have a maximum of 11 sends at any given time. During launches there are usually more sends than normal that are dropped around the city. You may be eager to jump around the city looking for properties to mint. You never want to get to a situation where you do not have any sends left. If you are down to your last send, make sure your next send is to a paper airplane!
If collections are known prior to the launch, many consider buying property there first. These are the most sought after and have the highest chance for resale. The rarer the collection, the higher the markup (and mint price) you can expect. On the other hand, there is an alternative strategy of not actively seeking out collection properties as the competition for them will be high. There are plenty of other popular neighborhoods or properties that can greatly increase in value that are not part of collections. Going to mint collection properties can be high risk, but also a high reward. Even if the release is in vanilla mode, don’t forget to make your standard collections if you haven’t already done so. By completing the following collections, you can get approximately another 3600 UPX: A: Newbie collection – Add one property to the collection B: King of the Streets collection – Add 3 properties on the same street C: City specific collection – Add 3 properties in the specific city (not be available during vanilla mode) D: City Pro collection – Add 5 properties in the same city
Click here to read about the best strategy about completing these collections.
