Impact By State
Between now and 2030, Minnesota will need to build 5,000 new apartment homes each year to keep up with demand.
The state of Minnesota preempts local municipalities from implementing rent control. According to Minnesota law, “No statutory or home rule charter city, county, or town may adopt or renew by ordinance or otherwise any law to control rents on private residential property.”
Many states have adopted programs and initiatives to tackle the affordability crisis. In Minnesota, policymakers and the housing industry have made concerted efforts to address the problem. Examples include:
The Bridges Program provides a rental subsidy to persons with serious and persistent mental illness and who are experiencing long-term homelessness. Eligible households must pay more than 30% of their gross income on rent and must be on a waiting list for permanent housing subsidies. Length of time of assistance depends on how quickly the permanent subsidized housing is available. Approximately 500 households receive assistance each month.
The Family Homeless Prevention and Assistance Program (FHPAP) provides short-term assistance to people who are homeless or who are at risk of becoming homeless. For those at risk of homelessness, the assistance generally takes the form of payments to cover rent, mortgage, or utility costs to prevent foreclosure or eviction. FHPAP is administered by the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency.
The Minnesota Housing Trust Fund (HTF) provides capital loans and grants to finance the construction and rehabilitation of multifamily rental units. Funding priority is given to housing proposals serving extremely low-income households, and proposals serving households experiencing long-term homelessness.
Useful information to help inform and guide the development of viable solutions to the housing affordability crisis.
Several industry experts agree that the rental market in Minnesota’s Twin Cities has “quieted” in recent years. Notably, new housing construction permits, including those for mother-in-law units and additions to public housing, have dropped from 1,638 in 2021 to 1,130 in 2023.
In Saint Paul, new city council members talk housing.
Minneapolis is proof that abundant housing is the best rent control.
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