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Although Minnesota is one of the coldest states in which to live, it’s long had no statewide law requiring landlords to maintain a minimum temperature for rental units. That changed with this year’s legislative session. 

Starting next year, Minnesota landlords will be required to keep rental units at a minimum of 68 degrees from October to April. It’s one example of a shift toward supporting Minnesota tenants’ rights.  

“Although we have more to do to ensure that tenants are not in a power imbalance, these new laws are large strides in the right direction,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said in an emailed statement. 

The history of landlord-tenant laws in Minnesota dates back to the 1850s, when they dealt mostly with disputes involving territory and agricultural land. Since then, significant changes to landlord-tenant laws have been few and far between, said Larry McDonough, who has nearly four decades of experience with housing laws. 

“When I look at the number of things that were passed this year, and the significance of each of them, no other year comes close,” he said. McDonough is a policy attorney for HOME Line, a nonprofit that provides free and low-cost organizing, education, and advocacy services to renters.

Some of the new landlord-tenant laws are highly technical, and most won’t be in effect until next year. Here’s a roundup of some of the new laws: 

McDonough said he has advocated for eight years for a state law establishing the right for tenants in public housing to have free access to legal representation. Cases not involving non-payment of rent are usually more complicated and the tenant is more in need of legal assistance, he said. 

Ellison said he was “especially glad” to see that landlords will no longer be able to evict tenants for minor crimes committed away from their rental property. 

“So-called crime-free lease provisions and ordinances have perpetuated and even magnified the racial disparities we know are present in our criminal justice system without any measurable benefit to the community,” he said.

Ellison’s office will revise its landlord-tenant publication late this month, and again in January. HOME Line has hosted public monthly webinars focusing on new state laws. To find out more and register to attend a webinar, check out this 

It can be challenging to spread the word about the new laws, especially for non-English speakers, said Julie Martinez, Minneapolis community relations specialist. She works on the city’s renters’ rights campaign, which was launched 

 to improve access to information about renters’ rights for renters and property owners. 

Martinez said the city will host culturally specific events this fall focusing on renters’ rights, the work of city housing liaisons, and how renters can report violations of landlord-tenant laws. 

McDonough said more needs to be done to better balance the rights of tenants and landlords in Minnesota. “But what’s being done this year is the biggest movement toward that balance in the history of the state,” he said. 

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Newly passed legislation evens the playing field between landlords and tenants, housing advocates say.

Fresh rights for Minnesota renters: Here’s a guide.

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