Buying a House with Bitcoins?
Nasdaq reported that a 4200 square foot luxury home in Russia was listed for sale at 3000 Bitcoins. The exact amount of the sale will be determined at closing since Bitcoins are volatile. Meanwhile, the Russian legislation are determining if such a sale is legal.
So, what are Bitcoins?
According to Bitcoin.org, they are an open source currency that "uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks."
Okay, that explains it. Not.
How about Wikipedia explanation?
Bitcoin is a worldwide cryptocurrency and digital payment system[13]:3 called the first decentralized digital currency, since the system works without a central repository or single administrator.[13]:1[14] It was invented by an unknown programmer, or a group of programmers, under the name Satoshi Nakamoto[15] and released as open-source software in 2009.[16] The system is peer-to-peer, and transactions take place between users directly, without an intermediary.[13]:4 These transactions are verified by network nodes and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain.
Oh boy. Any clearer? It's worth trying to understand because according to several sources, Bitcoins (or BTC) are accepted currency by many merchants. They can be used to purchase anything from pizza to, well, maybe a luxury property.
I guess the biggest question, is how to get a hold of Bitcoins in the first place. How do you amass enough to buy a luxury property or even just a pizza?
Money.CNN does the best job of explaining this esoteric concept. Apparently, one uses the open-source software to solve complex math problems to "mine" for BTC but this can be exceedingly slow. The quickest way would be to accept them as payment. They can also be purchased with any national currency at a Bitcoin exchange. And then they are held in digital wallets until tendered.....anonymously.
So, now does it all make perfect sense? If it does, you are probably a Nerd or a Millennial.
So, perhaps this might be the secret weapon Millennials will use to own their own home.
Cover photo courtesy of IceHawk33/freedigitalphotos.net