Minnesota Landlord-Tenant Law 2026: The Plain-English Guide
Minnesota's landlord-tenant law is tenant-protective in a quiet Midwestern way: a fast 21-day (3-week) deposit return clock, 14-day nonpayment notices, and strong retaliation protections. St. Paul's rent control experiment adds local complexity.
Security deposits
- No state cap on the amount.
- Return within 21 days (3 weeks) of move-out, with a written explanation of any deductions.
- Penalty: bad-faith withholding = up to 2x the deposit plus attorney's fees.
Use our Security Deposit Deadline Finder and deductions guide.
Rent rules
- No statewide rent control — but St. Paul voters approved rent stabilization in 2021 (later amended to exempt new construction). Minneapolis has debated similar measures. Check local ordinances.
- Late fees must be in the lease and reasonable.
- Raising rent: 30 days' notice for month-to-month tenancies (longer notice required in some local jurisdictions). See how to raise rent legally.
Eviction in Minnesota
1. 14-Day Notice to Vacate for nonpayment — the tenant can cure by paying within 14 days.
2. Notice with reasonable time to cure for lease violations.
3. File in Housing Court (Hennepin/Ramsey counties) or Conciliation/District Court elsewhere — eviction actions (unlawful detainer).
4. Hearing typically within 2–3 weeks.
Uncontested cases usually resolve in 4–6 weeks. Minnesota courts take tenant defenses seriously — bring your documentation. Self-help is illegal. Full process: how to evict a tenant.
Repairs and habitability
- Strong implied warranty of habitability; Minneapolis and St. Paul enforce housing codes aggressively.
- Tenant remedies after written notice: repair-and-deduct, rent escrow actions (Tenants Remedies Actions), lease termination for serious violations.
- Retaliation protections are broad — adverse action after a tenant complains is presumed retaliatory.
Entry rights
Minnesota requires reasonable notice before entry — no specific hour count in the statute, but 24 hours is the standard practice. Reasonable times, reasonable purposes, emergencies excepted. Put it in the lease.
The bottom line
Minnesota rewards careful landlords: 21-day deposit returns, 14-day cure notices, documented repair responses. The courts are fair but tenant-sympathetic — landlords who keep written records win; those who don't, don't.
This is general information, not legal advice. St. Paul and Minneapolis have local ordinances — consult a Minnesota landlord-tenant attorney for specific situations.