Monopoly Rule

Monopoly can be played with 2 to 8 players and lasts between 40 and 150 minutes. Here we’ll be discussing the rules of the game.

Goal of the Game

The goal of Monopoly is to be the last player standing, having caused all of your opponents to go bankrupt.

Start of the Game

At the start of the game, all players must receive 1500M (or 150,000 Fr depending on your version): 5 tickets of 1M, 1 ticket of 5M, 2 tickets of 10M, 1 ticket of 20M, 1 ticket of 50M, 4 tickets of 100M and 2 tickets of 500M.

Every player chooses a token that they keep for the entirety of the game.

Each player rolls the dice and the one with the highest total starts the game. If there’s a tie between two players or more then they roll again to break the tie.

Gameplay

• All tokens start on the Go square and the player who starts the game rolls the dice and advances according to the numbers indicated on them.
• You can land on different kinds of squares like Properties, Chance, Community Chest, Luxury Tax, Income Tax, Go to Jail, Just Visiting, or Free Parking.
• When you roll the dice and get doubles (both dice show the same number), you can advance according to the numbers shown as usual, and then roll them again to play another turn. It’s important to remember that if you roll three consecutive doubles you go directly to jail.
• It is possible for several players to be on the same square.

The Bank

One of the players is chosen as the banker and thus that player must handle all of the transactions involving the bank and they must also direct the auctions. Here are the various responsibilities of the banker:

• Managing the bank’s money and unowned title deeds.
• Paying players for a variety of reasons. For example, when they arrive at the Go square or when they mortgage a property.
• Collecting taxes and fines.
• Selling properties and conducting auctions.
• Selling houses and hotels.

It is possible to decide that there won’t be a banker and that all of these tasks are to be performed by all of the players.

Rules of Different Squares

Here are the rules to follow when you land on specific squares:

The Go Square

The game begins on the Go square.

The bank pays you 200M every time you land on or pass through this square.

In some versions of Monopoly, landing on the Go square earns you double the amount (400M). It’s up to you to choose the rule you prefer before the start of the game.🙂

The Property Squares

Properties are divided into several color sets. When you land on an unowned property, you can buy it for the price indicated on its square. You pay the money to the bank and receive the corresponding title deed card.

Building Houses and Hotels:

• Once you own all the properties of a color set, you can build houses on any of those properties within that color set.
• You don’t have to wait for your turn to build houses, you can build them in between other players’ turns.
• You pay the bank the price indicated on the corresponding title deed card.
• A hotel acts as the fifth house on a property. When you want to build a hotel, you must return all four houses on the property to the bank.
• It is forbidden to have a difference of more than one house between two properties in the same color set. For example, if you have four houses on Avenue Mozart, then Place Pigalle must have either three houses or one hotel.

Stations

• There are 4 stations in Monopoly: Gare du Nord, Gare Montparnasse, Gare de Lyon, and Gare Saint-Lazare. (These are the names of the stations in the French Version. The names differ depending on which version you have.)
• When you land on a station square, you can buy it for 200M.
• You pay the price to the bank and the banker will hand you that station’s card.

A station’s rent starts at 25M and doubles every time you buy a new station. For example, if you own one station then opponents who land on it must pay you 25M, however, if you own two stations then opponents will have to pay you 50M when they land on either one of your two stations, and so on. Here’s a table to help you further:

Utilities

• If you land on an unowned utility square, you can buy it according to the price indicated on the square.
• There are 2 utility squares: Electric Company and Water Works.
• Pay the bank the price indicated on the board and you’ll receive the utility’s card.

A utility’s rent is calculated in a unique way, here’s how:

• If you own only one utility, then an opponent who lands on it must pay you 4 times their dice roll. For example, if an opponent rolls a 6, then they’d have to pay you 24M (4×6=24).
• If you own both utilities, then an opponent who lands on either one of them must pay you 10 times their dice roll. For example, if an opponent rolls a 6, then they’d have to pay you 60M (10×6=60).

Chance and Community Chest Cards

If you land on a Chance or Community Chest square, then you must draw the top card from the corresponding pile and do as it says. Just put it back on the bottom of the pile when you’re done. Here is the list of the chance and community chest cards.

The Make General Repairs Card

If you land on a chance or community chest square and draw the make general repairs card, you must pay 25M for each house and 100M for each hotel you own to the bank. So if you have 10 houses on your properties, you have to pay 250M. If you have 5 hotels on your properties, you have to pay 500M.

The Go to Jail Square

Once on this square, you must immediately place your token in Jail. You do not receive 200M for passing the starting square. However, you can still collect rents, participate in auctions, mortgage properties, and trade with other players while you are in jail.

How to Get Out of Jail?

1. You must pay 50M at the start of your turn. After that, you roll the dice and advance normally according to the number indicated on them.

If you roll doubles, then the money is returned to you.

2. You can also try to roll doubles. If you manage to do so, you advance according to the number rolled.

• Important note: You are only allowed a maximum of 3 attempts to roll doubles. If you fail on the third attempt, you must pay 50M and then move forward.

3. There is one Get Out of Jail Free card in each of the chance and community chest piles. If you receive this card you can keep it with you until you need it.

When you’re going to use the Get Out of Jail Free card, you show it to the other player and then place it face down at the bottom of the chance or community chest pile, depending on which kind the card is. You then roll the dice and advance as normal.

4. You can buy a Get Out of Jail Free card from another player for a price you both have agreed on. Once you have it, you can use it while in jail. You then return it to its pile, of course.

The Income and Luxury Tax Squares

You must pay the bank the indicated amount once you land on these squares.

The Free Parking and Just Visiting Squares

These are safe squares as nothing happens when you land on them.

However, you can decide upon a special rule before the start of the game: The money players pay because of the Tax squares and Chance and Community Chest cards are to be placed in the middle of the gameboard and is given to the first player who lands on the Free Parking square (this is an official rule in some versions).

The Rent

• When you land on a property that’s owned by an opponent, you must pay them the rent indicated on the corresponding title deed card.
• All of the properties’ prices are indicated on their squares on the gameboard.
• The rent for a property with no houses, with one or more houses, or with a hotel is found on its title deed card.

When you own all of the properties of a color set, yet none of them have a house or hotel, the rent you collect will be doubled. For example, if you have all the properties of the green color set and a player lands on Avenue Foch (whose regular rent is 26M), then they must pay you 52M.

Auctions

If you land on an unowned property and decide not to buy it, then the banker must put the property in question up for auction.

All of the players are allowed to bid during an auction, this includes the banker and the player who decided not to buy the property in the first place.

The starting price is 1M.

Players keep bidding, each bid must be higher than the previous, of course.

The player who wins the auction pays the bank and takes the title deed card.

If none of the players are willing to bid, then the property remains unowned. The next time a player lands on it, they can either buy it or the property is auctioned again.

Mortgage

To mortgage a property in Monopoly, you must:

• Sell all the buildings on the property that’s to be mortgaged to the bank.
• Sell all the buildings on the properties in the same color group as the one to be mortgaged to the bank.
• Turn the title deed card face down and collect the mortgage value from the bank (according to the indicated amount on the card).

When you mortgage a property, it is still in your possession, however, you no longer have the right to collect the rent of this property. Nonetheless, you can still collect the rent of the other properties in the same color group.

If you want to lift a mortgage, you must pay the mortgage value shown on the back of the title deed card plus 10% interest to the bank. Once that’s done, you can turn the card face up again and you’re able to collect its rent as normal.

A property can remain mortgaged for as long as the owner wants.

A Player In Need of Money

If you have debts and cannot pay them or if you have no more money, then you will have to:

• Sell ​​your houses to the bank for half their purchase price (sold evenly in a color set).
• Mortgage properties.
• Sell ​​your properties to your opponents or give the properties to the opponent who you’re indebted to. The price of these properties will be calculated according to their purchase price.
• If the property you’re selling is mortgaged, then the player who receives it can choose to lift the mortgage or not.

You can make deals with your opponents, i.e.:

• Buy or sell properties with or without buildings at a price agreed between you and the other player.
• Sell a mortgaged property at a price agreed between you and the other player.

When you want to sell a property to another player, all buildings that are on the entire color set must be sold to the bank first (you can decide otherwise at the start of the game). After that, you can sell the property for the price agreed upon by you and the buyer.

Instead of selling property for money, you can exchange it with another player for a Get Out of Jail Free card.

The Bank Is Out of Buildings?

• If the bank has no more buildings in stock, players must wait for someone to sell some of theirs.
• If the bank has only one house or hotel left and 2 or more players want to buy it, the banker must auction it with a starting price of 10M.

End of the Game

A player who doesn’t have any money or who can no longer pay their debt will be declared bankrupt and is eliminated. The last player standing is the lucky winner of the game.

Alternate Rules

You can make the game even more fun and innovative by adding new rules like:

• No mandatory auctions: When you land on a property square and you do not wish to buy it, the bank will not be obliged to put it up for auction.
• Add money to Free Parking: Decide that the money a player pays as a tax, to get out of jail, or because of Chance or Community Chest cards be put in the middle of the board and the first player to land on Free Parking collects all of it.
• All opponents collect rent from an owned property: Every time a player lands on a property, they have to pay the rent to every opponent, not just the owner. For example, if an owned property’s rent is 15M, then if you land on it, you must pay every opponent 15M each.
• No limit on the number of houses or hotels a player can build: This rule offers more profit to players who have a lot of money. If you have enough money, then you can buy as many houses and hotels as you wish without any limitation. However, when the number of houses or hotels exceeds the number of normal rules, the cost of building them will be doubled.
• Allow to construct a building without owning the entire color set: Now it’s possible for a player to build a house or hotel even if they haven’t completed the color set. There’s a catch, though, the player will have to pay double the construction price if they do not own the complete color set.
• Go from one station to another without rolling the dice: When you have 2 or more stations in your possession and you land on one of them, you can immediately travel from the one you landed on to another one you own. A player who lands on one of your stations can also travel from one station to another but will have to pay for a “travel ticket” in addition to the rent.
• Players must lift a mortgage after acquisition: When a player buys a mortgaged property from another player, the buyer must immediately lift the mortgage (the price of lifting a mortgage in this instance could be the same price from the official rules or a price agreed upon by all the players at the start of the game).
• Completing the color set is mandatory: If you own 2 properties of a color set that contains 3 properties and another player buys the final property, then you have to buy it from them to complete the color set. In this case, the price you have to pay for the property is determined by the seller.

Official Rules in PDF

Here are the official rules of Monopoly in PDF in English:

Monopoly rules in English

Questions

What happens when you roll doubles?

When you roll doubles, you get to take another turn. However, if you roll 3 doubles in a row, then you are sent immediately to jail.

What happens if a player cannot pay off their debts?

If a player cannot pay the money they owe, then they must sell all of their houses and hotels to the bank at half price, mortgage, or give their properties to the player they’re indebted to. If despite everything, they do not manage to pay what they owe, they will be declared bankrupt and are eliminated from the game. The player who was owed the money doesn’t get paid in this case.

Can we have debts in Monopoly?

It is forbidden to have debts in the official rules of Monopoly, but you can decide to make it possible to have debts up to a certain amount if you wish.