How to Buy the Honeyside Manor in Skyrim

Last Updated: November 5, 2020

Honeyside is one of the few properties that you can buy inside the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim game. It's a small wooden manor located inside the town of Riften. Upon purchase, your main character will use this house to serve as its residence inside the city to become a Thane. Honeyside can only be purchased after you complete some quests related to the town of Riften, which shouldn't be that hard or complicated to do.

Steps

1
Travel to the city of Riften. Riften is one of the major cities in the world of Skyrim that the Dragonborn (main character) needs to travel to. It is located in the southeastern region of the map and can be reached either by foot or by horse.
2
Enter the city and head to the Riften Fishery. Here, you'll find an Argonian (reptile) woman named Wujeeta.

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3
Talk to the Argonian. She will tell you that she's sick because of Skooma use. Simply give her some health potion and force out some information from her about who's selling the Skooma, either by Persuasion, Intimidation, or Bribery.
- For reference purposes, Skooma is referred to as an illegal drug in Skyrim. The Skooma quest is part of the game's storyline, tracing back from the very start of the game.
4
Talk to the Jarl of Riften. After getting some information from Wujeeta, head to the keep inside the city and talk to the Jarl (Laila Law-Giver) about the Skooma incident.
- The Jarl will then tell you to kill the Skooma dealers (another quest).
- If you have completed the Civil War questline for the Imperials, the Jarl will instead be Maven Black-Briar.
5
Kill the Skooma dealers. The Jarl will give you a key to a warehouse located outside Riften at the port. Enter the warehouse and eliminate the Skooma dealers.
- The dealers are rather weak and can be easily defeated.
6
Go back to the Jarl. Talk to her to complete the quest, and she'll then ask you to help a couple more Riften citizens. Go back out into the city and look for people to help.
- You need to help at least 3–5 citizens with random quests that are rather trivial and very easy to complete.
- Easier quests include that of Sniff and Edda, who just want a small donation of money. Other quests include gathering ingredients or items, so talk to passersby for quest details.
7
Go back to the Jarl again. She'll make you a Thane (a local hero) for assisting the people of Riften, but before she can do that, she'll tell you that a Thane should be a resident of Riften. She'll then tell you of a property that you can purchase.
8
Talk to the steward. You can purchase the house for 8,000 gold from him.
9
Go back to the Jarl. She'll now make you a Thane and give you a Housecarl (Iona), a non-playable character that's in charge of safekeeping a house.

Community Q&A

Question

I reloaded an earlier save, and it still isn't working. What else can I try?

Community Answer

Try talking to the quest giver again, or maybe you messed it up before and have to restart.
Question

Can I keep my current follower when the Jarl offers her Housecarl?

Community Answer

Yep! Either your current follower will leave and go to where they were recruited, or the Housecarl will not follow you and remain in the Keep/Housecarl Quarters in your house.
Question

If I have a high bounty and don't have the money to pay it off before buying the manor, what should I do?

Community Answer

Go to jail and do your sentence -- this will allow you to lose the bounty without paying it off. (The only downside is that you lose a little bit of accumulated skill.) You should deposit any stolen items in a safe place before going to jail, as the guards will take your stolen items.