The cost of buying Lindens

[Leander Philbin]

Hello,

Since the most recent transaction fee change, I've been buying Lindens in 4,000L$ blocks.  Up until around March of this year this would cost, on average, $17USD (plus or minus a few cents).  Since March, the cost has gone up steadily until, when I made a purchase today, it was $18.16USD.  Just wondering has their been that big a change in the SL economy because of the pandemic??

[Alwin Alcott]

54 minutes ago, Leander Philbin said:

Hello,

Since the most recent transaction fee change, I've been buying Lindens in 4,000L$ blocks.  Up until around March of this year this would cost, on average, $17USD (plus or minus a few cents).  Since March, the cost has gone up steadily until, when I made a purchase today, it was $18.16USD.  Just wondering has their been that big a change in the SL economy because of the pandemic??

the exchange is never been static, it's a money market like rl with changes multiple times a day.
Lateley the lines were going down a bit.. less L$ for your dollar.

[Lindal Kidd]

Hi @Leander Philbin!

As Alwin says, the exchange rate is not static, although it usually stays within a narrow trading range.  Sometimes, for reasons known only to themselves, LL allows the exchange rate to move more than usual.  When I first joined SL, the rate was around $L270 = $1.00 USD.  Then for a long time, it was about 250:1.  In recent months, it's been going down, and is now about 242:1.

I'm just speculating here, but it may be that LL wanted the $L to be worth more, in $USD terms, due to the sale of Second Life to an investor group.

[LittleMe Jewell]

If you are not in an extreme hurry, you can use the Limit Buy and get a better rate.  Just be careful what rate you specify or the wait will be 'forever'.  If the estimated time for your desired rate is around 10 minutes or less, the order will typically fill in no more than a hour or so.  Estimates of a few hours have typically been closer to a day and estimates of more than a day start seeming like they are really in that "forever" category - I've never had the patience to wait more than a day.  Just a week ago, I did a buy at L$251 per US $1 - the estimated time was 7 hours, but it actually took about 15-16 hours to fully fill.  Currently the L$251 rate falls in to the 'many days or forever' category, but you cans till get better than the default going rate if you are willing to wait a bit.

[Lindal Kidd]

Here's what I do when placing a limit order...

First, I look at what the costs/proceeds of a market buy or sell will be, by filling out the order, but not hitting the confirmation button.

Then, I look at the outstanding orders.  Just scroll down from the purchase boxes to see them.

I look at the top two entries.  A very large "total remaining quantity" means that any order I place at that rate will be waiting for quite a while, until all the orders in front of mine have been filled.  How far the offer's exchange rate is from the current rate will also affect the time required to fill.  Compare that rate to the current maximum and minimum prices (shown in the Market History data in the chart at the top).  If the offered rate is outside the market's range of movement, I'll be waiting a long time.

Based on what I see, and how urgently I need the money, I'll pick either the first or the second rate for my limit order.

Edited August 7, 2020 by Lindal Kidd