Off the top of my head, and assuming none of this is secretly in the update:
Ceiling furniture and accent walls are obtained through Nook Miles in the free update. Partitions, pillars, different lighting, ambient noises, polishing items, etc. are from the DLC.
I can't believe how much they packed into it, and there's so many little elements that will bring so much to the game. Like accented walls and counters. Ahhh!!!! There's too much to look forward to I can't even remember half of it lmao.
I feel exactly the same way! Cooking and growing crops looks super cool though, I agree. Going to be nice to have an allotment on the island and see villagers admiring the tomatoes haha.
Yes, people can receive the Sanrio furniture, but it doesn't register in their catalog (and thus become re-orderable) unless they've scanned the cards themselves. I'd be very surprised if any DLC-exclusive furniture couldn't at least be gifted to other players.
They said you can go back and redecorate past houses with new options you unlock later, which implies the vacation homes stay there until you decide to tear them down. I doubt it's permanent permanent, since with only 48-49 plots and seemingly a different request for every single animal + NPC that can be scanned, it wouldn't make sense to hard limit the player to only one use per plot.
if it's like how Happy Home Designer worked, the plots don't get used up when you pick one. It's mainly to give you choices on the landscape and layout for the villagers, and you choose to visit them from a list rather than a map.
At one part when they were on the map screen, it showed animal icons in a couple places, indicating those plots were in use.
The roommate thing might throw a spanner in the works but I'd be really surprised if it's actually locking you out of those options until you evict someone.
The DLC will surely give easier access to some of the new furniture, but no furniture is locked behind it, only advanced decorating options like partition walls and different lighting. Worst case scenario is you'd just have to find someone who has the DLC and get the furniture from them.
I think we'll still have vendors coming in our main island, regardless. As someone mentioned before, they seem to have less items to offer. Plus, I noticed that Leif's cart also has the veggie sign he uses for the store.
Tbh, I think it's a fair amount to ask. It's a whole new game/experience (HHD in 3DS was $40). I guess it comes down to how much you like the designing aspect of the game. But I can see that DLC providing 200+ of game alone.
My best way of getting bells is through Nookazon. List the items you have and ask for bells! You'd be surprised how easy it is to get a lot of money out of it
