A Minnesota rental agreement is a legal contract between a landlord overseeing a rental property and a tenant who wishes to use it. Minnesota landlord-tenant law governs and regulates these agreements.
Minnesota Rental Agreement Types
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A Minnesota roommate agreement is a legal contract between two or more people (“co-tenants”) who share a rental property according to rules they set, including for things like splitting the rent. This agreement binds the co-tenants living together, and doesn’t include the landlord.
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Minnesota Required Lease Disclosures
- Total Monthly Payment Disclosure (required for all leases) – Minnesota leases must specify, on the first page, the sum total of rent plus all non-optional fees. The lease must clearly describe this amount as the “Total Monthly Payment.”
- Landlord’s Name and Address (required for all leases) – Minnesota leases must contain the name and address of the landlord or authorized agent. This enables smooth communication of any important legal notice.
- Late Fee Disclosure (required for some leases) – Minnesota will only enforce properly disclosed late fees and returned check fees. Late fees may not exceed 8% of the past due balance and must be agreed in the lease. Returned check fees are capped at $30, if a prominent posting at the landlord’s place of business discloses such a fee.
- Inspection and Condemnation Disclosure (required for some leases) – Minnesota property with outstanding citations relating to health and safety orders must disclose the violation and/or related pending inspection. If inspection has already taken place, the landlord may provide notice that the inspection report is available upon request.
- Financial Distress Disclosure (required for some leases) – Minnesota properties facing foreclosure must include the pending date, so that tenants are not displaced from their homes without notice.
- Shared Utility Agreement (required for some leases) – Minnesota landlords must take sole responsibility for utility billing on any properties which share utilities, and disclose this to prospective tenants. This disclosure must also outline how utility charges are allocated, including a breakdown of shared utility bills from the past 2 years upon request.
- Covenant of Landlord and Tenant Not To Allow Unlawful Activities (required for all leases) – Minnesota leases must contain a specific agreement between the landlord and tenant that neither will allow unlawful activity on the premises.
- Initial Inspection Option Disclosure (required for all leases) – Minnesota landlords must, within 14 days of the tenant’s move-in, offer the option of an initial property inspection with a move-in checklist to assess the property’s condition for later accurate deduction from the security deposit.
- Lead-Based Paint Disclosure (required for some leases) – For any property built before 1978, federal law requires that a Minnesota residential lease must contain a lead-based paint disclosure with an EPA informational pamphlet, plus notice of any lead hazards on the property.
To learn more about required disclosures in Minnesota, click here.
Minnesota Landlord Tenant Laws
- Warranty of Habitability – Minnesota landlords can only rent out habitable property, which means providing certain features essential to basic health and safety like heat, plumbing, electricity, and sound structural elements. Landlords must repair any issues within 14 days after proper notice from the tenant. Failure to repair lets a tenant sue the landlord or get a court order for rent deduction or reduction. Tenants usually can’t repair and deduct.
- Evictions – Minnesota landlords may evict tenants for a number of reasons including, but not limited to failure to pay rent, a violation of a leasing term, or committing an illegal act. Landlords must provide tenants with prior notice to quit. In practice, this means that the time required to finalize an eviction depends broadly on the guidance of an applicable lease agreement.
- Security Deposits – Current Minnesota laws do not limit the amount a landlord can charge as a security deposit. However, these laws do require all held security deposits to be returned within 21 days of a termination of a lease. This return period is only 5 days if the termination was due to condemnation of the property.
- Lease Termination – A month-to-month lease in Minnesota can be terminated by a tenant if they provide notice equal to the frequency at which they make rent payments. Meanwhile, a tenant in a fixed-term lease can break off their lease early if they qualify for termination due to active military duty, domestic violence, landlord harassment, or uninhabitable property.
- Rent Increases and Fees – Minnesota law preempts a local municipality’s ability to adopt any ordinance intended to control rent. If a rent increase occurs, the landlord is required to provide one month’s notice. This state also allows landlords to charge most types of fees, as long as they are outlined in a lease agreement.
- Landlord Entry – Minnesota landlords have the right to enter rental property for purposes reasonably related to the tenancy, like maintenance and inspections. Before entering, they must provide at least 24 hours of advance notice, unless it’s an emergency situation.
- Settling Legal Disputes – Minnesota allows landlord-tenant disputes in small claims court (also known as Conciliation Court), as long as the value in controversy is under $15,000. Minnesota has diverse small claims courts, and not all of them accept eviction cases or set the same value in controversy standard for evictions.
To learn more about landlord tenant laws in Minnesota, click here.
Additional Resources
- Entering into the Agreement – Landlords and Tenants – This resource, provided by the state Attorney General, discusses features and issues common to landlord-tenant situations, such as requirements for executing a valid lease.
- Department of Administration – Leasing Services – While intended for people who are renting property from the state government, this page contains numerous sample provisions relating in particular to environmental protection measures. These provisions can easily be included in most leases, if desired.
Sources
- 1 Minn. Stat. § 604.113(2)(a)
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A service charge, not to exceed $30, may be imposed immediately on any dishonored check by the payee or holder of the check, regardless of mailing a notice of dishonor, if notice of the service charge was conspicuously displayed on the premises when the check was issued.
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