# Monopoly "rule" question **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 13, 2011, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626 "2011-08-13T23:35:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bannedit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Bannedit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bannedit)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/1 "2011-08-13T23:35:42Z")
So… family game night. The kids convinced us to play monopoly. We don’t play this game because we always fight. We knew it was a bad idea going in, but they insisted. I’m doing well, landing on and buying property. I have 2 out of the three “reds” and land on the third. I want to buy it but I’m a little short, so I tell the banker that I want to mortgage a property to pay for it. The wife jumps up on the table and screams “Nooooo!” (Not really). She says that I can’t mortgage property to get money to buy more property. I say that I can do whatever I want with my property. Keep in mind that we established a few rules at the beginning of the game. Is my wife correct, or am I? ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/2 "2011-08-13T23:37:21Z")
[Here you go.](http://richard_wilding.tripod.com/monorules.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Sarabellum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarabellum/32/3492_2.png) [@Sarabellum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarabellum)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/3 "2011-08-13T23:38:03Z")
You are. You can mortgage any property you want, for any reason, as long as it’s your turn. ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/4 "2011-08-14T01:13:17Z")
You are. You cannot collect rent on mortgaged properties, however. It doesn’t even have to be your turn. ---
**Author:** ![Bannedit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Bannedit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bannedit)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/5 "2011-08-14T02:04:28Z")
I ended up losing, but not before I made some great deals with my youngest to set her up for the win… I don’t see us playing monopoly again any time soon. It is a good thing we don’t have any guns in the house. ---
**Author:** ![markdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@markdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdash)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/6 "2011-08-14T06:03:31Z")
> [@Bannedit](#): > > I ended up losing, but not before I made some great deals with my youngest to set her up for the win… I don’t see us playing monopoly again any time soon. It is a good thing we don’t have any guns in the house. Monopoly is probably the game with the largest inverse relationship between how much we think we like it and how much fun it actually is. ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/7 "2011-08-14T06:44:38Z")
I’ve seen Monopoly as #1 on a good number of “Things that seemed like a good idea at the time” lists. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/8 "2011-08-14T07:28:20Z")
My FIL’s wife wanted to do the “Free Parking” thing. Unfortunately, people kept forgetting to put their payments in the middle of the board, and forgetting to collect it if they did land on FP. She also insisted that you had to **pass** Go to get your $200; you didn’t get it for landing **on** Go. She’s abrasive in a lot of ways though, far beyond Monopoly. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/9 "2011-08-14T07:47:33Z")
> [@Bannedit](#): > > I don’t see us playing monopoly again any time soon. It is a good thing we don’t have any guns in the house. Maybe it would lead to a more civil game if you did play while armed? ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/10 "2011-08-14T13:21:56Z")
I’ve played with real money before. 1c = 1 dollar, so when you pass Go, you get $2 in real cash. Land on Boardwalk with a hotel? $20 :eek: Man, when you do this, the game gets real _serious_. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/11 "2011-08-14T13:41:30Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > My FIL’s wife wanted to do the “Free Parking” thing. Unfortunately, people kept forgetting to put their payments in the middle of the board, and forgetting to collect it if they did land on FP. She also insisted that you had to **pass** Go to get your $200; you didn’t get it for landing **on** Go. She’s abrasive in a lot of ways though, far beyond Monopoly. That’s moronic, unless you get the $200 on your next turn when you advance beyond Go, hence “passing” it. But then, there’s no point in making the distinction in the first place. Playing like that, it would really suck to land on Go and not get $200, then roll a “4” and land on Income Tax. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/12 "2011-08-14T13:43:27Z")
Our house rules (in grad school, when we played a lot) were $500 if you land _on_ Go. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/13 "2011-08-14T15:44:37Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > That’s moronic, unless you get the $200 on your next turn when you advance beyond Go, hence “passing” it. Yes, you get it on your next turn. > [@](#): > > But then, there’s no point in making the distinction in the first place. Unless your point is to let everyone know that this is Your House (as opposed to your husband’s). > [@](#): > > Playing like that, it would really suck to land on Go and not get $200, then roll a “4” and land on Income Tax. Exactly, and see above. Although to be fair, you can land on Income Tax and pass Go in the same turn. And I always take the 10% option if I have less than $2000. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/14 "2011-08-14T17:27:06Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > Exactly, and see above. Although to be fair, you can land on Income Tax and pass Go in the same turn. And I always take the 10% option if I have less than $2000. I thought you had to include assets. I’m pretty sure that’s what the NES version did. Incidentally, am I the only one who never played it with auctions? That was my biggest surprise when I rented the NES version. ---
**Author:** ![FoundWaldo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@FoundWaldo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoundWaldo)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/15 "2011-08-14T17:57:58Z")
I saw this recently and it seems relevant: [http://www.criticalmiss.com/issue10/CampaignRealMonopoly1.html](http://www.criticalmiss.com/issue10/CampaignRealMonopoly1.html) ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/16 "2011-08-14T19:54:48Z")
I don’t know anyone who played with the Auction Rule. I suspect most people don’t even know it exists. Our house rule was the Free Parking one: a $500 bill to start and any payments to Chance, Community Chess, or the Taxes go in the middle. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/17 "2011-08-14T20:03:49Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > Our house rule was the Free Parking one: a $500 bill to start and any payments to Chance, Community Chess, or the Taxes go in the middle. How long did your games last, if they ever ended? The first time I insisted that we play with no Free Parking and \*with \*auctions was the first time I ever heard my family say, “wow - Monopoly is actually kind of fun!”. ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/18 "2011-08-14T20:32:57Z")
> [@markdash](#): > > Monopoly is probably the game with the largest inverse relationship between how much we think we like it and how much fun it actually is. It’s also the game with the largest inverse relationship between the way it’s supposed to be played and the way it’s actually played. ---
**Author:** ![markdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@markdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdash)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/19 "2011-08-14T21:44:06Z")
> [@ekweizn](#): > > It’s also the game with the largest inverse relationship between the way it’s supposed to be played and the way it’s actually played. Enlighten me. I would guess that even with aggressive mortgaging, auctioning of properties, and no free parking payoff, most games would end up either with an hours-long grind or a lopsided trade that would decide the game. Am I wrong on any of these counts? ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626/20 "2011-08-14T21:57:19Z")
> [@FoundWaldo](#): > > I saw this recently and it seems relevant: [http://www.criticalmiss.com/issue10/CampaignRealMonopoly1.html](http://www.criticalmiss.com/issue10/CampaignRealMonopoly1.html) interesting [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monopoly-rule-question/592626.md?page=2)