A seasoned Monopoly player may have found themselves in the fortunate situation to be able to build a hotel on property, increasing the fee players pay. However, when a player hits a streak of bad luck, they might need quick income and wonder if they can sell hotels in Monopoly.
Players can sell hotels back to the bank, per the official rules of Monopoly. Players can sell a hotel back for one-half of the purchase price, so they will receive half the money they paid for the hotel when they sell it back.
Now that we know it’s possible to sell a hotel in Monopoly, we need to dive into how this can be processed and what the next step is. Most importantly, how much money can we get from selling a hotel? Read on for all the answers and more information.
How to Sell Hotels in Monopoly
If a player wants to sell hotels in Monopoly, they will need to sell back to the bank. The bank will give back half of the original cost of the hotel when it was purchased. The hotel will then be exchanged for the four houses that they had before building the hotel.
Players can only sell a hotel if there are enough houses in the building supply.
Building supplies refer to the number of houses and hotels that are standard in a game of Monopoly. As players progress in the game, they can start building on their properties; the more people playing, the quicker these supplies can get low.
Players can only sell a hotel if four houses are available to replace it. If there are fewer than four houses or no houses, they will need to sell all hotels and the corresponding houses until they can place the available houses evenly on the properties.
For example, if we owned red properties with all hotels and needed to sell one, but there were only two houses, we would need to sell three hotels and ten houses. We can then place the two available houses evenly over two of our three red properties.
This scenario would massively reduce the money received in rent on our prosperities. It’s best to avoid selling hotels unless there are enough houses to replace them.
What Happens if I Sell a Hotel in Monopoly?
If a player sells a hotel, this will decrease the rent on their property (to the rate for how many houses are on the property). This means when other people land on their property, they will not need to pay as much, decreasing their income.
It’s best not to purchase a hotel unless we have a good reserve of money. Using all our money to buy a hotel can lead to a tough situation if we get hit by hefty, unexpected fines.
Selling a hotel also makes the building available for another player to purchase, increasing the rent on their property. If we land on their property, we may pay a lot in rent.
Since selling hotels will make us as much money as selling houses, it’s best to sell houses first and retain the high rent from the hotel than risk paying another player high rent.
How Much Does a Hotel Sell for in Monopoly?
The amount a hotel sells for in Monopoly depends on the purchased property. The bank will only pay half the price initially paid for the hotel. This price varies depending on the property’s color, with the lowest-value property being brown and the highest-value dark blue.
The prices of purchasing buildings are different on each side of the board. Depending on what color a property is will decide how much a hotel is worth and, in turn, how much it will sell for. See below for the selling price of each hotel depending on property color:
- Brown or Light Blue M25 per hotel
- Pink or Orange M50 per hotel
- Red or Yellow M75 per hotel
- Green or Dark Blue M100 per hotel
The above prices are based on the standard version of Monopoly. There can be variations in price depending on the version of the game.
Hotels can only be sold back to the bank. We cannot sell a building to another player or haggle with the bank regarding the cost of the building.
Key Takeaways and Next Steps
It is possible to sell hotels in Monopoly, but we can’t sell to anyone. Hotels can only be sold back to the bank, which will be at a loss of 50% of the original investment.
Usually, a player will only sell a hotel back to the bank if they need money to pay bills. Hotels can’t be used as bargaining tools with other players.
Hopefully, this article has helped clear up any friendly disagreements on the sale of hotels in Monopoly. It’s completely within the rules to do so, but it’s usually the last resort for a player who’s down on their luck.
Try to hold on as long as you can to your hotel because it’s always a big payday if a player lands on your property and has to pay the total hotel rent.
When I play Monopoly, I try not to buy a hotel (or houses) until I’ve got a good cash reserve first – and it’s safe to do so. This is definitely the “safer” way to play, but it’s great if you’re in it for the long-haul version of the game.