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Minnesota Housing is urging people who are behind on rent because of the pandemic to 

. Those who are eligible and complete an application can stay in their homes while the state is processing their claim.    

Those who do not apply can be evicted for nonpayment beginning Sept. 12. Landlords must give them 15 days’ notice. Evictions are already allowed for tenants who violate their lease in other ways. 

The extra time is part of an “off-ramp” state lawmakers passed in June to ease the transition for tenants who’ve lost income during the pandemic, instead of risking a wave of evictions when the federal moratorium ends July 31.

Housing Commissioner Jennifer Ho said the easiest way to see if you’re eligible for assistance is to complete the application. 

“It’s really the best-case scenario, to be able to get a check out to the property and make everybody whole again,” she told MPR News host Tom Crann. “If somebody just leaves, that’s a lose-lose for both the property and the renter, because the owner will never get that past-due rent, and the renter will go back into the rental market with both a credit mark and a poor reference on their rental history.”

To hear more on how the program works and what people can do if they are being wrongly evicted for cause, listen on the audio player above.

Shows

All Things Considered

Minnesota News

Minnesota Housing News

Health

COVID-19

Tom Crann

Host

Megan Burks

Author

The federal moratorium on evictions during the pandemic expires July 31, but Minnesota state lawmakers designed an “off-ramp” that gives renters here more time. 

Federal eviction protections are ending — Minnesota's are not

MPR Photo/Brandt Williams

A timeline showing steps in ending a rental program.

Federal eviction protections are ending — Minnesota's are not

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