Playing the Game of Monopoly IRL (in real life)

One of my favorite board games of all time is Monopoly. I remember everybody who played with me always trying to roll high numbers to get around the board quickly to race who was going to buy Boardwalk first. The worst feeling in the world is landing on Boardwalk but not having enough money to purchase the property. Not having enough money to buy property can happen because you were paying fines or losing rent to other players.

Buying properties and collecting rent from other players is the best strategy for winning at the game of Monopoly. Is buying property the right strategy in the game of Monopoly in-real-life (IRL)? When I bought my first home in 2010, I was not thinking about FIRE but instead thinking about the game of Monopoly. It was my opportunity to become a landlord for the first time and collect rent instead of paying rent. More importantly, it created a rental income stream that gets me closer to my goal of leaving the rat race of life.

Collecting rent from other players

After my wife convinced me to purchase a foreclosed 2-bedroom 2-bath condominium during the middle of the subprime mortgage crisis, my perspective changed on paying rent. My wife likes to remind me that, Rent money is paying a mortgage for somebody else in the game of Monopoly except in-real-life (IRL).

The objective in the game of Monopoly is to make the other players go bankrupt. It becomes clear that buying properties is the best strategy to win the game. Another strategy would be that you could just roam around the board “without being tied to a mortgage” hoping other players go bankrupt from paying fines and rent before you. I do not have to be a math major to know that the probability of winning the game with the roaming strategy is very low. Buying properties and collecting rent from other players is the best strategy for winning at the game of Monopoly. Is buying property the right strategy in the game of Monopoly in-real-life (IRL)?

Renting versus Owning

It is estimated that 37% of homeowners are “free and clear” of a mortgage in the United States. In other words, some of these homeowners are buying up Monopoly properties and collecting rent from other players as positive cash flow.

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Not all of us have the cash to buy a property but instead, we can apply for a mortgage that breaks the payments into monthly installments. In some cities of the United States, the mortgage payment is actually cheaper than paying rent. Cities such as Houston, Miami, Denver, and Riverside favor owning a home versus renting. Below is a list of US cities where the median mortgage is cheaper than the median rent.

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There are many arguments for Renting versus Owning. Below is a list of some that I would endorse.

FIRE (financial independence, retire early) through real estate

I started Rent the Mortgage in 2019 to help document my financial lessons with the intent of inspiring others to start their FIRE journey through real estate. I bought my first home in 2010 and have included real estate in my FIRE portfolio ever since. Below is my FIRE through real estate portfolio:

Property	Monthly Mortgage	Rental Income	Cash Flow
Peninsula House	$2,806.26	$2,000	-$806.26
South Bay House**	$4,365.97	$0	-$4,365.97
South Bay Townhome	$1,225.82	$3,500	+$2,274.18
Chicago Multi-Unit	$1,589.81	$2,600	+$1,010.19
——–	——–	——–	——–
	$9,987.86	$8,100.00	-$1,887.86
	Total Monthly	Total Income	Total Cash Flow

**South Bay House still being renovated therefore no rental income yet which is why I have negative cash flow at the moment.

Here is my opinion on buying real estate. Making better financial decisions starts with understanding what you are buying. The last time I checked, rent money buys nothing tangible. Buying a home is not necessarily an investment but it is buying the responsibility of being financially smart. All the money that I spend on mortgage payments is building equity in my homes. That equity adds up to my net worth and gets me closer to my FIRE through Real Estate goal of leaving the rat race.

What is the rat race of life?

The rat race of life is the idea of working endlessly to support a lifestyle with no goals and no end in sight. Without setting a goal means you are just running inside a rat wheel that is going nowhere even if you work harder. Working harder just means the wheel spins faster in place but same results. People at work often use this metaphor to describe their dire work-life-balance (WLB) situation. The rat race of life is running inside a wheel that is going nowhere except that there is no winner of this race.

How do I get out of the 9-to-5 rat race?

The 9-to-5 rat race is all about running inside a wheel that goes nowhere no matter how hard you work. Embracing FIRE and creating income streams outside of your regular job is your best option of escaping the rat race.

From 2010, I started to build my FIRE through Real Estate portfolio and only started Rent the Mortgage blog in 2019 to tell the story. The truth is owning real estate is really not so passive income. FIRE through real estate is hard work but will pay off in the long run if you stick with it as I have.

Now when I play Monopoly, I buy almost everything I land on as long as I have the cash. (I avoid Utilities because the ROI on rent is inconsistent. Utility rent is based on 4 times the amount rolled on dice.) Buying property aggressively in Monopoly strategy provides me with some assets that start a small rental income stream while I make my way around the board collecting $200 after reaching GO. Soon enough I find that the rent payments begin to outpace my need to pass GO. As the game progresses I am eventually able to achieve FIRE through Monopoly Real Estate.

What is your favorite character piece when playing the game Monopoly? How do you feel about your current Work-Life-Blance situation? Let me know in the comments.