[quote=@Ermine]
[@NightmareInd]At what level will we gain access to buying legit shops? And will they be a real-cash or in-game-currency thing? I hope the latter, of course, because I tend to hate P2W games, and you expressed that same inclination.
[/quote]

Well, like seen in a few episodes of SAO, houses can be bought already at floor 1, but it seems like they are a bit basic compared to other houses on higher floors. They cost quite a bit of in-game money though, so that means much farming :P