In a trend experts think will continue, metaverse land sales exceeded $500 million in 2021 and are on pace to beat $1 billion by the end of 2022. The data comes from metaverse analytics firm MetaMetric Solutions.
The $501 million total metaverse land sales in 2021 came from the four top metaverses — Sandbox, Decentraland, Cryptovoxels, and Somnium. Total, there are 268,645 parcels of land on these four platforms, all of varying sizes.
Sandbox had the most sales in 2021, followed by Decentraland.
With some organizations saying the metaverse is a multi-trillion opportunity, there has been a land rush in the top metaverse platforms. Further spurring this momentum was Meta, which changed its name from Facebook to state its metaverse ambitions further.
Although the land rush has slowed since Meta’s announcement, metaverse land sales were still trending high. For instance, sales are ten times higher in January of 2022 compared to January of 2021. According to some, this trend will likely continue throughout the year. One organization even believes that metaverse land sales will grow at a compound annual rate of 31% from 2022 to 2028.
Metaverse land poses some investment risks, and companies weigh those risks when purchasing. Although having a prime land spot in a top metaverse could do wonders for a business, metaverse land itself has “artificial scarcity” and can be created with a few lines of code.
This artificial scarcity has made some wary about investing, though it’s not stopping others from taking the plunge. Recently, Tokens.com purchased prime metaverse real estate in Decentraland and is turning it into a venue. This year, the land will house the first Metaverse Fashion Week, and Tokens.com is looking to create experiences on the property.
While a prime factor in off-chain real estate, location is not that important in digital words because users can teleport or get around faster. Instead, what people build on their land — including experiences — can make it more attractive to other users and possibly more valuable.
However, location does play a role in some cases of digital land ownership. Recently, plots next to Snoop Dogg’s planned establishment were selling for a premium, and NFT communities have coveted spaces close to major investors or the owners of popular NFT collections.