Skip to Content

​When Can You Start Trading In Monopoly?

*This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

 

Monopoly is a board game currently published by Hasbro. In the game, players roll two six-sided dice to move around the game board, buying and trading properties, and developing them with houses and hotels. Players collect rent from their opponents, with the goal being to drive them into bankruptcy. 

Money can also be gained or lost through Chance and Community Chest cards, and tax squares; players can end up in jail, which they cannot move from until they have met one of several conditions.

The game has numerous house rules, and hundreds of different editions exist, as well as many spin-offs and related media. Monopoly has become a part of international popular culture, having been licensed locally in more than 103 countries and printed in more than 37 languages.

So when can you start trading in Monopoly?

Some players have “house rules” that prohibit trading before a certain time such as when all properties are purchased or a certain number of times around the board. However, the official Monopoly rules have no such limitations on them so trading properties is allowed immediately after buying them per the official rules. 

If you would like to know more about when you can start trading in Monopoly, please keep reading or check out this video!

If you love board or card games then you have to check out the game called Throw Throw Burrito! It is a fun fast-paced game where you throw squishy burritos at other people you are playing with! You can learn more by clicking here.

Ticket to Ride Board Game | Family Board Game | Board Game for Adults and Family | Train Game | Ages 8+ | For 2 to 5 players | Average Playtime 30-60 minutes | Made by Days of Wonder

If you love games then you have to check out Ticket To Ride! This fast-paced board game will give you hours of fun with family and friends as you gather train cars and try to take over the board!

Ticket To Ride has many different variations as well so you can play across a variety of different maps.

History Of Monopoly

Monopoly is a popular board game generated in the USA during the early 19th century. Primarily directed towards individuals and families to provide entertainment, it was also targeted to impart education on fundamental and real-world topics in finance and economics.

Monopoly is a money-based game where the main portion of the game deals with purchasing, renting and development of properties and physical assets which could in turn produce cash as profit.

Main Entities

Monopoly is a total financial game or at least it is inspired by real life financial markets. It has been modeled on the real estate market and hence most of the activities are real estate inspired activities. The main entities in this game are the players made from the ordinary people of the society and the bank which controls the money flow and makes different rules upon which the game functions.

Fundamental Operations

The main fundamental operations in a Monopoly game are the buying and selling of different properties, buildings, and hotels. Also, renting out apartments is another important aspect that can be seen in some games.

The most fundamental constituent of these above transactions is the ability to make a trade.

Making A Trade

Any fundamental operation which results in the transfer of money or property from one individual to another can be described as a trade. A single trade is the single most fundamental operation for the transfer of assets. Trades can be done by any individual participating in the game and it relates a player to another player and a player to a bank. So, in short, trading in Monopoly games means trading or exchanging properties amongst individual players involved in the game.

Buying or selling a property for cash can be thought of as a major trade example. Trades like these are mostly done singly or with the help of other players in the game. This can in turn be done in a single turn or in multiple turns. A successful trade always leads to the transfer of an asset which is tangible in nature, an asset that you could touch and feel.

Types Of Trades

Fundamentally, trades can be of the following basic types:

  • Trading off one property between two or more individual players with the help of money or property. This type of trade results in the change of ownership of properties or movement of money from one source of player to another.
  • Trading between banks and players where mortgages and loans are taken between various players and banks which again results in the change of ownership status of individual properties.

Rules For Trading

Under the Monopoly game rules, trading can happen at any time and can even be initiated when it isn’t your turn however most people have a house rule that you can’t propose a trade unless it is your turn however if another trade is happening at the table you can try and negotiate to try and steal the deal!  An elaborate discussion on different trades can be seen through examples of buying property, selling property, paying rent, house mortgages, and buying hotels and houses.

Successful trades can be made totally independent of the status of the players in the game at that time. It is also independent of the turn a player is playing in. If the trade is of property for money, and any trickery is done, then the player doing the trickery goes to jail. The player must then pay the correct amount to the player whom he has defrauded before he can come out clean of the situation.  

The Bank 

Besides holding cash, the bank holds all the documents including the deeds of all the hotels and houses initially. These properties are sold and auctioned by the bank in a trade between the bank and the players. Bank trades also include selling and purchasing of mortgages between different players who need such services in a certain part of the game. The bank always has money in itself, so when the bank runs low on cash, the banker creates new cash by writing out new notes just as an analogy to the actual banking system.

Buying Property

Another trade can also be done with the banks. When a player lands on an unowned property, they are able to buy that property from the bank at its face value price. All the documents related to the property are transferred in the name of the player. If nobody is interested in buying such property then the bank trades through an auction process where the property is auctioned between all the players of the game.

Paying Rent

Another very common transaction that happens is paying rent in the Monopoly game.  When a particular player lands on a property owned by another player, then the owner of the property collects a loan from the occupying player. This sum of money is in accordance with the rules of the game.

Trading Houses

Transactions of houses can be another important trade in Monopoly. When certain players own all the properties of a certain color group, then they may trade with the banks to buy houses from them and erect those houses upon those properties they own.

Following the rules of the game, the players can make as many trades and buy as many houses as they want as long as they have the money to do so. 

Trading Hotels

If a player owns four houses on every property that completes a color group, then he is entitled to buy a hotel from the bank. This is another trade that the user can take part in.

Conclusion

As we can see, there are many different kinds of trades and rules about those trades when playing Monopoly. The most important thing to remember is under the Monopoly game rules, trading can only begin when all the properties and spaces are already owned by the players. If you follow these rules and only make your trades when they are allowed, it makes that game more fun, and work how it was intended.