Mower County, Minnesota Eviction Risk: Moderate

Mower County carries an average eviction-risk score of 4.8/10 (Moderate) across its 15 cities, placing it at rank 30 of 87 Minnesota counties, right in the middle third of the state. That rank means 29 counties are riskier than Mower and 57 are more landlord-friendly, so conditions here are broadly manageable but not among the easiest operating environments in Minnesota eviction laws. With an average rent of $919 and a rent-burden rate of 29%, tenants in the county are not dramatically overextended, though the margin for unexpected income disruptions is thin enough to keep landlords on guard.

Within the county, the intra-county range of 4.5 to 5.3 is wider than it might look on paper, spanning the difference between genuinely low-friction submarkets and above-average-risk neighborhoods. A renter share of 26.4% and a poverty rate of 14.1% underpin that spread, and investors who treat the county as a single homogeneous market will find their underwriting quickly overtaken by local variation.

The cities inside Mower County

Mapleview posts the county's highest risk score at 5.3/10, standing clearly above every other community in the county. Its population of 850 means the rental pool is small, so individual tenant quality has an outsized effect on a landlord's overall results. Austin, the county seat with a population of 26,358, scores 4.8/10 and accounts for the great majority of the county's total population of 31,982, making it the market that drives the county average. Dexter (population 350) also comes in at 5/10, matching Austin despite its much smaller scale, while Mapleview scores 5.3/10.

On the lower-risk end, Rose Creek scores 4.6/10, the friendliest reading in the county. Le Roy and Adams both score 4.8/10, and Grand Meadow and Lyle each come in at 4.5/10. The takeaway for investors is that risk in Mower County is genuinely hyper-local: a few miles of distance can shift conditions by nearly a full point, and a diversified portfolio spread across Austin and the smaller western towns behaves very differently than one concentrated in Brownsdale.

State-level laws that apply here

Regardless of which city a landlord operates in, the same Minnesota eviction laws statute governs the eviction process. For nonpayment of rent, the required notice period is 14 days under Minn. Stat. § 504B.291. A material lease violation or the end of a month-to-month tenancy each require a 30-day notice under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135. Landlords should also note the 24-hour entry-notice requirement and that source-of-income discrimination is protected under state law. Understanding the Minnesota eviction laws eviction process from notice through court order is non-negotiable before placing any tenant in the county.

Filing fees under Minnesota eviction laws state law range from $310 to $410, sheriff lockout fees from $55 to $150, and attorney fees typically run $750 to $3,000. An uncontested case resolves in 30 to 60 days; a contested proceeding can stretch to 60 to 150 days. Minnesota eviction laws does not impose statewide rent control, and just-cause eviction requirements are not in effect at the state level, which keeps operational flexibility relatively intact. For a full breakdown of recoverable and non-recoverable costs, see the guide to Minnesota eviction costs before projecting returns on any rental here.

With a poverty rate of 14.1% and a renter share of 26.4%, Mower County's risk profile is shaped more by the economic baseline of its largest city, Austin, than by any single regulatory factor; the city grid above shows exactly where within the county that exposure concentrates.