Goodhue County, Minnesota Eviction Risk: Moderate

Goodhue County earns a 4.9/10 Moderate eviction-risk score across its 9 tracked cities, placing it 27th of 87 counties in Minnesota. That ranking means 26 counties carry higher risk and 60 are more landlord-friendly, putting Goodhue County in the higher-risk third of the state. For landlords and investors, a 4.9 county average signals meaningful tenant-side stress, with a rent burden averaging 31.3% of income and an average rent of $974, conditions that tend to generate late payments and eventual nonpayment filings at above-moderate rates.

The practical operating picture is mixed. Only about 24.8% of residents rent, so the renter pool is smaller and somewhat self-selecting compared to high-density urban markets. Minnesota eviction laws imposes no statewide rent control and does not require just cause for most terminations, which preserves important landlord flexibility. The county's intra-market spread, from 4.5 to 5.4 across individual cities, is wide enough that city selection within Goodhue County matters as much as the county average itself.

The cities inside Goodhue County

The highest-risk address in the county is the city of Goodhue itself, scoring 4.9/10, followed by Cannon Falls at 4.5/10 (population 4,227) and Kenyon at 4.9/10 (population 1,824). Pine Island, Wanamingo, and Bellechester each score 5.4/10, clustering just below those top-risk names. Landlords active in any of these markets should price their screening and reserve assumptions against the higher end of the county's risk band.

The clearest relief valve is Zumbrota, which scores 4.5/10 (population 3,914) and represents the most landlord-favorable conditions in the county. Red Wing, the county's largest city at 16,758 residents, sits at a middle-ground 4.8/10, essentially matching the county average. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a landlord in Zumbrota faces a materially different operating environment than one seven miles away in Cannon Falls.

State-level laws that apply here

All landlords in Goodhue County operate under Minn. Stat. § 504B (Landlord and Tenant). For nonpayment of rent, Minnesota eviction laws requires a 14-day notice before filing (Minn. Stat. § 504B.291). Material lease violations and month-to-month terminations each require a 30-day notice under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135. An uncontested eviction typically resolves in 30 to 60 days; a contested case can stretch to 60 to 150 days. Understanding the full Minnesota eviction laws eviction process, including those timelines, is essential before projecting carry costs on a troubled tenancy.

The direct cost of an eviction in Minnesota eviction laws ranges from a court filing fee of $310 to $410, plus a sheriff lockout fee of $55 to $150, and attorney fees that commonly run $750 to $3,000 depending on complexity. Minnesota eviction costs can therefore reach several thousand dollars before accounting for lost rent during the vacancy. The state does not cap rent and does not require just cause for most non-renewal decisions, which does give landlords meaningful exit flexibility once the statutory notice is served. Minnesota tenant protections do include source-of-income protections enforced by the Minnesota eviction laws Department of Human Rights, which affects how landlords may screen applicants statewide.

With a poverty rate of 11.3% and fewer than one in four households renting, Goodhue County's risk profile is shaped as much by economic stress among a small renter base as by any single policy factor; see the city grid above for scores on each individual market within the county.