Houses (Skyrim)

Breezehome located in Whiterun.

Houses are buildings with sleeping accommodations and containers that are safe for storing items. A house is available for purchase within many of the larger cities in Skyrim; however, permission must be obtained from the city's Jarl before their purchase. There are also a number of other properties throughout Skyrim that can be used as a home.

There is no limit to how many houses the Dragonborn may own. The Dragonborn can ask spouses to move into a house or choose to move into the spouse's house. Children also are able to change houses.

Benefits of owning a house

1. Sleeping in the Dragonborn's own house grants the Well Rested bonus. If the Dragonborn sleeps in a house where their spouse also lives, they will receive the bonus Lover's Comfort. However, under the effects of the Lycanthropy affliction or having the Lover Stone active, the Dragonborn cannot gain either of these bonuses.
2. Containers in an owned house do not reset, so items may be stored inside any of its chests, wardrobes, cupboards, dressers and others.
3. Decorations can be bought for an owned house from the city's steward. Every house's kitchen includes a cooking pot or spit. The Dragonborn may also purchase an alchemy lab for every house. Arcane enchanters are available for every house except Breezehome in Whiterun.
4. Hjerim, Proudspire Manor, and Vlindrel Hall have enough combined bookshelf space between them to hold every available book in Skyrim. This does not include diaries, journals, notes, letters, documents, recipes, or spell tomes.
5. Valuable dead bodies can be stored in houses without being reset.

List of purchasable properties

Houses

Name	Location	Price	Upgrade	Details
Breezehome	Whiterun	5000	1600	After Bleak Falls Barrow from Proventus Avenicci or Brill
Hjerim	Windhelm	8000-12000†	9000	Completing Blood on the Ice and Stormcloak or Imperial Army quest lines.
Honeyside	Riften	5000-8000†	4300	Purchased from Anuriel.
Proudspire Manor	Solitude	25000	11000	Completing The Man Who Cried Wolf and a miscellaneous quest named Elisif's Tribute for the Jarl.
Severin ManorDB	Raven Rock	Free		Completion of the quest Served Cold.
Vlindrel Hall	Markarth	8000	4100	Purchased from Raerek after completing a number of quests for the Jarl including the quest to Recover Hrolfdir's Shield.
† House may still be purchased as long as the player has a smaller amount of gold on hand. The cost will be all your gold up to the larger amount of gold.

Plots

With the addition of Hearthfire, plots of land can be bought for 5000 in order to build a Homestead.

Name	Hold	Housecarl	Details
Windstad Manor	Hjaalmarch	Valdimar	Purchased from Aslfur, or Pactur if the Stormcloaks have taken Hjaalmarch.
Lakeview Manor	Falkreath	Rayya	Purchased from Nenya, or Tekla if the Stormcloaks have taken Falkreath.
Heljarchen Hall	The Pale	Gregor	Purchased from Skald the Elder, or Brina Merilis if the Imperials have taken the Pale.

Advantages and disadvantages

Breezehome

Breezehome, Whiterun.

Breezehome, in Whiterun, is inexpensive and easily acquired early in the game, but it is the only home that lacks an enchanting table. It and Vlindrel Hall are the only homes that provide adequate storage in the alchemy room. In order to access an Arcane Enchanter in Whiterun, the player must exit Breezehome, then head to Dragonsreach, forcing the player to wait through two loading screens, as well as journey to the opposite side of the city. For members of the Thieves Guild, the fence in Whiterun is located outside of the city entirely, at Honningbrew Meadery, requiring fast-travel and extra transitions anytime the player wishes to move stolen goods.

Breezehome is close to the town's smelter, blacksmith, alchemist, general goods store, and both taverns. 

If one wants to spend no gold the following may be done: First, you must acquire the money for the selected house/upgrade. Then, talk to the steward of any hold in which you can buy property. Click on the house or house upgrade option you want to purchase. Then find a container and store all of your gold in it. Then gain the key to your house.

Honeyside

File:Honeyside Riften.jpg

Honeyside, Riften.

Honeyside, in Riften, is similarly inexpensive and can be acquired early in the game. Unlike Breezehome, it can be equipped with an enchanting table but has no smelter within the city. The player must travel to the village of Shor's Stone to find one. Additionally, the Thieves Guild fence, Tonilia, is located in the Ragged Flagon, which requires a significant trip with three transitions to reach from the home.

Vlindrel Hall

Vlindrel Hall, Markarth.

Vlindrel Hall, in Markarth, has both an alchemy table and enchanting table. Smithing amenities are available, including a Smelter, but are located across town. The fence in Markarth is located nearby, but moves around and sometimes requires a transition to reach. Vlindrel Hall has the disadvantage of having fewer armor storage mannequins than the other "higher-end" homes, having only one. Vlindrel Hall is a good choice for book collectors as it provides the most book storage, (162 books), thanks to three large bookshelves conveniently located next to each other instead of scattered smaller shelves such as in Hjerim.

Hjerim

File:Hjerim Front.jpg

Hjerim, Windhelm.

Hjerim, in Windhelm, contains both an Arcane Enchanter and an Alchemy Lab (once upgraded), and is in close proximity to Smithing amenities, a Smelter, and the Windhelm fence, all of which are closely grouped with zero transitions. Niranye, the Windhelm fence, is located outside in a market stall, whereas every other fence, (except for Endon in Markarth, sometimes), requires at least one additional transition to reach. Lack of storage space is a concern, as is the very poor lighting in the hidden room containing the Alchemy and Enchanting areas. Hjerim also takes some of the most work to acquire, as the quest "Blood on the Ice" and part of the Civil War questline must be finished before purchasing the house.

Proudspire Manor

Proudspire Manor, Solitude.

Proudspire Manor, in Solitude, is by far the most expensive home in the game. Solitude itself offers an average selection of shops, however they are located some distance away from the manor. The Solitude fence is located nearby, but will require a transition to reach. One must buy this property to complete the quest No Stone Unturned legitimately as one of the Stones of Barenziah is in the bedroom area unless they are using the double Stones of Bareniziah glitch.

Severin Manor ^DB

Severin Manor, Raven Rock.

Severin Manor, in Raven Rock, is a sizable Dunmer home given to the Dragonborn by completing the quest Served Cold. It is fully furnished at the time of gaining it, however your spouse cannot move here. It is also the only house that is located on Solstheim. It contains crafting stations such as Arcane Enchanter, Alchemy Lab and Forge, as well as a large storage space, allowing you to unload some unwanted gear without having to leave the island.

Conclusion

Hjerim can only be acquired upon progressing to a certain point in the Civil War questline while Vlindrel Hall cannot be acquired until at least level 20 and Proudspire Manor is prohibitively expensive for most low-level players. Breezehome and Honeyside are smaller, and each less convenient in some ways, but can be obtained much earlier in the game for the majority of players. Therefore, which house is most advantageous will likely depend upon playstyle and personal preference.

Faction related houses

Faction housing are granted free of charge upon joining with a guild. Spouses cannot live with the Dragonborn at these locations unless the spouse is also a member, for instance Aela the Huntress and Onmund being members of the Companions and the College of Winterhold respectively.

The chest and barrel in Kodlak's Quarters in Jorrvaskr in Whiterun can reset, thus permanently deleting all items placed within them after a certain period of time. The wardrobe, cupboard and other containers do not, however.

Name	Location	Faction	Details
Apprentice's Quarters	Hall of Attainment	College of Winterhold	Available upon enrolling in the College of Winterhold.
Arch-Mage's Quarters	Hall of the Elements	The College of Winterhold	Available upon completing the The Eye of Magnus.
Companion Quarters	Jorrvaskr, Whiterun	The Companions	Available upon joining the Companions.
Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary	Outside Falkreath	Dark Brotherhood	Available upon joining the Dark Brotherhood, (storing items here not recommended if one plans to continue with the quest line.)
Dawnstar Sanctuary	Outside Dawnstar	Dark Brotherhood	Available after completing the quest Hail Sithis! The Master Bedroom upgrade costs 3000 gold, purchased from Delvin Mallory, as part of a total of 19,000 gold upgrade of the sanctuary.
Kodlak's Quarters	Jorrvaskr, Whiterun	The Companions	Available upon completing the Glory of the Dead.
Lord Harkon's Quarters	Castle Volkihar	Volkihar Clan	Available after completing Kindred Judgment.
Nightingale Hall	Outside Riften	Thieves Guild	Available upon completing Darkness Returns.
The Ragged Flagon - Cistern	Riften	Thieves Guild	Available upon joining the Thieves Guild.

Spouse houses

See also: Marriage

The following is a list of all the possible spouses who own property and the conditions required to marry them.

Male spouses

Spouse	Property	Location	Conditions
Ainethach	Karthwasten Hall	Karthwasten	Complete his favor.
Balimund	The Scorched Hammer	Riften	Complete his favor.
Erik the Slayer	Frostfruit Inn	Rorikstead	Complete his favor.
Filnjar	Filnjar's House	Shor's Stone	Complete his favor.
Gat gro-Shargakh	Pavo's House	Left Hand Mine	Complete his favor.
Pavo Attius	Pavo's House	Left Hand Mine	Complete his favor.
Quintus Navale	The White Phial	Windhelm	Complete The White Phial
Revyn Sadri	Sadri's Used Wares	Windhelm	Complete his favor.
Romlyn Dreth	Romlyn Dreth's House	Riften	Complete his favor.
Vorstag	Silver-Blood Inn	Markarth	Hire him at least once
Perth	Miner's House	Reach	Complete his favor.

Female spouses

Spouse	Property	Location	Conditions
Aeri	Aeri's House	Anga's Mill	Complete her favor.
Avrusa Sarethi	Sarethi Farm	Sarethi Farm	Complete her favor.
Borgakh the Steel Heart	Larak's Longhouse	Mor Khazgur	Covince her to become a follower.
Camilla Valerius	Riverwood Trader	Riverwood	Complete The Golden Claw
Dravynea the Stoneweaver	Braidwood Inn	Kynesgrove	Complete her favor.
Gilfre	Gilfre's House	Mixwater Mill	Complete her favor.
Mjoll the Lioness	Aerin's House	Riften	Retrieve Grimsever for her.
Muiri	The Hag's Cure	Markarth	Complete Mourning Never Comes.
Sylgja	Sylgja's House	Shor's Stone	Complete her favor.
Uthgerd the Unbroken	Uthgerd's House	Whiterun	Defeat her in a brawl.
Viola Giordano	Viola Giordano's House	Windhelm	Begin Revyn Sadri’s favor, but inform Viola.
Ysolda	Ysolda's House	Whiterun	Bring her one Mammoth Tusk

Shacks

Name	Location	Details
Abandoned Shack	North of Morthal	This is the shack where the player is taken to during the Dark Brotherhood quest: With Friends Like These... Only the chest is a safe container.
Alchemist's Shack	South of Ivarstead	A small shack with a working Alchemy Lab. The end table next to the bed is a safe container.
Riverside Shack	South-west of Windhelm	A small shack that contains the half-eaten remains of the owner. Has one safe wardrobe, a Tanning Rack and a bed the player can sleep in.
Anise's Cabin	West of Whiterun	Once Anise is dead, the bed can be slept in and the storage areas may be used without danger of them being reset. Features an alchemy and enchanting table. When in the basement, Followers may refuse to interact, saying "We shouldn't be here."
Traitor's Post	East of Windhelm	Two wardrobes and a cupboard that you can store items in. The chest there resets along with the bandits.

Other houses

Name	Location	Price	Details
Abandoned House	Markarth	Free	Available after completion of The House of Horrors. All containers are safe and do not respawn.
Alvor and Sigrid's House	Riverwood	Free	Available if Hadvar is followed during Unbound.
Faendal's House	Riverwood	Free	While Faendal is a follower. After dismissing him he will sometimes be found dead in the street this may be the reason the house has remained available. No containers have respawned in the couple of hundred hours of this playthrough (PC).
Goldenglow Estate	West of Riften	Free	Available by intimidating Gulum-Ei in the Thieves guild quest Scoundrel's Folly.
Hod and Gerdur's House	Riverwood	Free	Available if Ralof is followed during Unbound.
Delphine's Secret Room	Sleeping Giant Inn, Riverwood	Free	The secret room becomes available during A Blade in the Dark. The chests in the room are safe containers.

Achievements and trophies

File:File:Citizen (Achievement).png	Citizen Buy a house
Points	10
Trophy

File:File:DB-Ach9-RavenRock.jpg	Raven Rock Owner Own a house in Raven Rock
Points	20
Trophy

Bugs

This section contains bugs related to Houses (Skyrim). Before adding a bug to this list, consider the following: Please reload an old save to confirm if the bug is still happening. If the bug is still occurring, please post the bug report with the appropriate system template  360  /  XB1  ,  PS3  /  PS4  ,  PC  /  MAC  ,  NX  /  PS5  ,  XS  , depending on which platform(s) the bug has been encountered on. Be descriptive when listing the bug and fixes, but avoid having conversations in the description and/or using first-person anecdotes: such discussions belong on the appropriate forum board.

Click to see the list of bugs encountered

PC   360   PS3   An exploit can be used to acquire a house without losing gold; requires possession of the amount of needed to buy the house. Immediately after telling the steward, "I'll take it!", exit the conversation before he finishes talking, store all your gold in any nearby chest or drawer, and your gold will not be taken but you will still receive the key and trigger the ownership flag on the house. Can be used, for example, to acquire Proudspire Manor (and subsequently any other house you can work this exploit on).  360    PS3   Using the above exploit may cause weapon racks to become unusable.  360    PS3   The above exploit can also be used to acquire the decoration upgrades to houses for free.  360    PS3    PC  Placing items anywhere in a your house freely (ex. tables, dressers, etc.) will often result in the items ending up on the floor nearby upon re-entering the house, not including weapon racks, wall mounts, bookshelves, which are placed by activation. Bumping or otherwise moving items which were already placed in the house can also result in them being "unpinned" and free to be strewn about the house. In some cases, re-entering a house will result in a large number of items falling through tables, flying off shelves and otherwise making a huge mess (especially in Breezehome), making this a nightmare for players demanding neatness in their home. The housecarl, unfortunately, does not include cleaning in their list of duties to their Thane.  360    PS3   In Hjerim, Vlindrel Hall and Honeyside the mannequins can glitch so if the armor is taken off the mannequin, if the player re-enters the house, the armor has been duplicated and will be on the mannequin. This glitch can be used for income, since the armor can be sold.  360    PS3   Sometimes Sanguine Rose and Wabbajack, when put in the weapon racks, will be stored upside down. The Axe of Whiterun, when put in weapon racks, will be stored perpendicular to the wall.  360    PS3   If books are placed on a bookshelf in player's home, then read and taken, player will be unable to activate the bookshelf again. Seemingly the only solution is loading a previous autosave.  360    PS3   Mannequins, weapon racks, weapon plaques, and display cases may bug in differing ways. In all houses, mannequins can become transparent, but putting a necklace on them, exiting the activation screen, and taking it off can fix it temporarily. Racks, plaques, and display cases may all lose their ability to be activated. One known temporary solution is to punch the bugged piece of furniture until the option to 'activate' reappears. Sometimes when a house is purchased, the items inside will not be in players ownership, so every item will have the "steal" option instead of "take," and taking them will be considered stealing by onlookers.  PS3   Many pointed out bugs, like mannequins, weapon racks and dagger displays not working properly, can be avoided by buying the house and all upgrades at once and then entering the purchased and upgraded house. Although, some minor bugs are still present like mannequins becoming transparent or player's items put in the house can be found scattered all over.  360   Sometimes one of the bookshelves will turn invisible. This is only a visual bug/glitch. Could be caused by having books on said shelf when completing a whole quest line. Taking everything off the bookshelf then exiting and reentering the house fixes this. Might only affect the bookshelf right near the entrance in Breezehome and the Companions quest.  360   When entering Breezehome some books on bookshelves will disappear entirely resulting in them no longer being on the bookshelf or anywhere at all. The soulution is to load the last autosave.