How to Change the Occupied Lot in The Sims 4
As a passionate Sims gamer and content creator, one of the most common questions I see from new players is: "How do I change the occupied lot my Sims live on?"
It‘s a great question! Switching up your Sims‘ home base is not only easy to do, it unlocks new creative storytelling possibilities and gives your neighborhood a feeling of being truly "lived-in."
In this in-depth guide from a fellow Sims aficionado, I‘ll cover several methods to change occupied lots, plus tips to make the most of this versatile feature. Let‘s dive in!
An Occupied Lot Refresher
First, a quick refresher – what exactly constitutes an "occupied lot" in The Sims 4? Essentially, it refers to any residential or retail lot actively inhabited by playable Sims in your game.
- For residential lots, it‘s wherever a Sim household currently lives
- Retail lots count when owned by your playable Sims to run a retail business
Occupied lots are marked by a small "lived-in" icon on the lot thumbnail image. This distinction is important when changing lots. Now onto the fun stuff!
Use Manage Worlds
The most direct way to change occupied lots is through Manage Worlds. Click the "Manage Worlds" button from the neighborhood view, main menu, or map screen to enter the world management tool.
Here, every lot in your currently loaded game saves are displayed and can be modified.
To make a lot occupied:
- Select the desired lot
- Choose "Play"
This loads the lot and automatically moves the previously occupied household there. It‘s incredibly useful for quickly shuffling Sims between different homes and retail spaces.
Pro Tip: Link the Library to Manage efficient relocation
If you want to relocate Sims to a lot you‘ve uploaded to the Gallery, you can easily browse for it under Manage World‘s Library tab without leaving the tool. My go-to for rapid moving!
Transfer Households Directly
Manage Worlds not your style? Prefer to stay immersed in Live Mode? No problem! You can swiftly transfer occupancy status between lots in Build Mode:
- Enter Build Mode of current lot
- Go to Household tab (house icon)
- Select "Move Household"
- Choose desired lot as new home
Once complete, your household transitions to their new home lot automatically in Live Mode without unloading the save. It keeps the story flow going!
Fun tip – if you don‘t see the option, make sure to exit CAS first.
Retail Business Ownership Swaps
Similar to household transfers, you can directly swap ownership of retail lots between your Sims entirely in Build Mode too.
It works the same exact way:
- Enter Build Mode on retail lot
- Click Household tab
- Choose "Transfer Retail Store"
- Pick the new owner from your households
- Profits!
This is perfect for telling stories like passing down family businesses generationally in legacy saves, or an employee working their way up to run their own store.
Cheat to Switch Lots Fast
Veteran Simmers likely know of the trusty "freerealestate on" cheat. For new players though, it‘s a game-changer!
By enabling cheats and inputting freerealestate, all lots become free to claim in your save. You can instantly bounce between homes and community lot types without waiting or paying bills.
It removes major barriers for creatively changing occupied status frequently. I use it all the time for staged screenshots and episodic series. Just be sure to save first as it can disrupt certain gameplay elements.
Impact of Switching Occupied Lots
While changing occupied lots is simple, it can have meaningful effects on your save file depending on timing and approach. Consider the following:
Lose Relationships If Households Split
Say Group A has 4 Sims, and you move 2 to a new lot. Those 2 will retain relationships only with each other, losing connections to former householdmates. Plan accordingly!
Preserve Progress by Moving Whole Household
To maintain job levels, skills, relationships, etc., do a full household transfer instead of splitting.
Retail Businesses Persist After Ownership Change
The retail store type, layout, inventory, and staff are retained when transferring to a new owner. No starting over from scratch!
Gallery Lots Lack Household Data
Placing a Gallery lot will make it occupy automatically. But only the building itself transfers over; no Sims or household specifics.
So in summary, weigh whether to split or move households together based on if you value progress or telling a new story more. Lot ownership swaps preserve existing content well. And Gallery is great for shells only.
Reasons to Switch Up Occupied Lots
Beyond the methods, when should you actually utilize changing lots in gameplay?
As a passionate builder and storyteller, I‘m constantly switching occupied status for these key reasons:
- Construct storylines spanning multiple homes & businesses – Add history!
- Build up savings by occasionally moving to cheaper lots
- Create unique event venues like rented destination wedding lots
- Carry family legacies across multiple generations‘ homes
- Make entire districts feel vibrantly lived-in and real
- Roleplay aging up kid and teen Sims moving away from parents
The possibilities are endless. It makes the neighborhood feel alive.
My best tip? Theme days for specific lot types. Have an apartment day where your leads bounce between affordable city flats. Run a retail Saturday with ownership transfers between stores. Or host a dinner party that moves between courses at different sized estates. Changing occupied lots opens up so many creative avenues!
Final Thoughts
I hope this guide gives you a strong sense of just how readily you can shift occupied status between lots in The Sims 4. Take it from a passionate Simmer – don‘t be afraid to take the leap!
It genuinely keeps gameplay feeling fresh when you switch up households and businesses. By frequently exercising flexibility in occupied lots, you can build richer stories, deeper legacies, and more vibrant communities.
What will you try first – a multi-generational ancestral home rotation, epic suburban tale spanning starter to dream house, or entrepreneurial rags-to-riches retail legacy? Share your occupied lot adventures!
Happy Simming! Let me know any other lingering questions in the comments.
