Theme
Players take the part of land owners, attempting to buy and then develop their land. Income is gained by other players visiting their properties and money is spent when they visit properties belonging to other players. When times get tough, players may have to mortgage their properties to raise cash for fines, taxes and other misfortunes.

Gameplay
On their turn, a player rolls two dice and moves that number of spaces around the board. If the player lands on an as-yet-unowned property, they has the opportunity to buy it or auction it to the highest bidder. If a player owns all the spaces within a color group, they may then build houses and hotels on these spaces, generating even more income from opponents who land there. If they lands on a property owned by another player, they must pay that player rent according to the value of the land and any buildings on it. There are other places on the board which can not be bought, but instead require the player to draw a card and perform the action on the card, pay taxes, collect income, or even go to jail.

Goal
The goal of the game is to be the last player remaining with any money. (though some editions end the game when the first player goes bankrupt)