In court-decided eviction outcomes for Lake Lillian, MN, tenants prevail in roughly 37.3% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
89d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Lake Lillian, MN until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 89 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$3.6–9.0k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Lake Lillian, MN costs landlords $3,574 to $8,975 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$700
18% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Lake Lillian, MN is $700 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 18% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
15.7%
of households
15.7% of occupied housing units in Lake Lillian, MN are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
7.8%
5.8% unemp.
7.8% of Lake Lillian, MN residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 5.8%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
GOP margin +41.4% (2024)
3.9
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
3.9
State political climate
Minnesota legislature & governorship
4.3
Economic stress
7.8% poverty · 5.8% unemp.
5.8
Supply constraint
$700 average · 15.7% renters
3.9
Rent Control risk
17.5% of income on rent
2.8
Eviction process difficulty
89 days filing → judgment
4.3
Tenant organizing strength
15.7% renters
4.6
Housing court bias
County bench composition
3.6
Geographic context
Risk heat across Lake Lillian and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Lake Lillian compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Renville County
Elevated
#4of 11 cities
#4 of 11 cities in Renville County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Minnesota
Moderate
#505of 909 cities
#505 of 909 cities in Minnesota for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
4.7
/ 10 · MODERATE
The verdict
A Moderate-tier market.
Composite 4.7/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+2.0 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
89d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $700/mo. A contested eviction takes 89 days and costs $3,574–$8,975 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
15.7%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 157 residents, 15.7% rent. 18% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 7.8% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
3.9
Local + regional
The politics
Light-statute interior market.
Local & regional political climate score 3.9 and 3.9 (GOP margin +41.4% (2024)). State climate at 4.3, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
4.3
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 4.3/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 4.3, housing court bias 3.6, rent-control risk 2.8. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-0.7 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.8
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5.8. Supply constraint: 3.9. The numbers behind those: 7.8% poverty, 5.8% unemployment, 18% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Lake Lillian sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Lake Lillian · 89d · ~$6.3k all-in ($71/day) · score 4.7National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Lake Lillian, Minnesota, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 4.7/10 (MODERATE tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Mid-tier market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Lake Lillian is a city of 157 residents where 15.7% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 17.5% of income on rent. At an average rent of $700/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Lake Lillian eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 4.3/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Lake Lillian closes 89 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Lake Lillian's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 3.6/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Lake Lillian runs $3,574 to $8,975 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 89 days of typical timeline and $700/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 4.6/10 in Lake Lillian, and the city has limited rent control exposure (2.8/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Minnesota, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Lake Lillian: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a MODERATE tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Minnesota's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $8,975 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Lake Lillian
Trap · PRACTICAL TRAP
Compare Lake Lillian to neighboring cities in Renville County via the grid below. The 3.7/10 score is computed from nine sub-factors plus a state-law multiplier under Minn. Stat. 504B. Renville County 2020 presidential margin: R+36.6. Cross-reference the state overview link in the guides section for Minnesota statutory detail.
04Eviction filings
Live filings tracking · Eviction Lab
Princeton Eviction Lab Tracking System, state-level (no county tracker available). Last update 2026-05-01.
In the most recent month, 2,011 eviction cases were filed across the tracker's coverage area, 1.03× the historical baseline (near baseline). Past 12 months: 26,070 filings. Pandemic-era cumulative: 113,788.
2,011Past month
26,070Past 12 months
1.03×vs baseline (past mo)
11.5%Repeat-tenant filings
Notice requirement: no advance notice (in the case of nonpayment of rent). Filing fee: minimum filing fee of $310.
Last 36 months of filings2023-05-01 – 2026-04-01
Filings stayed roughly flat over the past 12 months.
Source: Eviction Lab Tracking System, Princeton University. Open Data Commons Attribution license.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in Lake Lillian for any reason?
No, not for any reason. You need a legally recognized reason, such as non-payment of rent, lease violations, or the expiration of a lease term (with proper notice). Minnesota does not have statewide "just cause" eviction requirements, meaning you can typically terminate a month-to-month lease with a 30-day notice without stating a specific "cause." However, you cannot evict for discriminatory reasons or in retaliation.
Q2
How long does a tenant have to pay rent after it's due in Lake Lillian?
In Lake Lillian, following Minnesota law, if rent is not paid when due, you can issue a 14-day pay-or-quit notice. This means the tenant has 14 days from receiving the notice to pay the full amount of rent owed or vacate the property. There's no statutory grace period beyond what's in your lease before you can issue this notice, but many landlords allow a few days.
Q3
Can I charge a late fee for rent in Lake Lillian?
Yes, you can charge late fees if they are clearly stated in your lease agreement. Minnesota law dictates that late fees must be reasonable and cannot exceed 8% of the overdue rent payment. Make sure your lease specifies the exact amount or percentage and when the late fee will be applied.
Q4
What if my tenant refuses to leave after the eviction is granted?
If the court grants you a judgment for possession and the tenant still refuses to leave, you must obtain a Writ of Recovery from the court. You then present this writ to the Renville County Sheriff's office. The Sheriff will serve the writ and, if necessary, physically remove the tenant and their belongings from the property. You cannot do this yourself; it must be executed by the Sheriff.
Q5
Is Lake Lillian impacted by Minnesota's source-of-income protection?
Yes, Lake Lillian landlords are subject to Minnesota's statewide source-of-income protection. This means you cannot deny an applicant housing solely because they use public assistance, housing vouchers (like Section 8), or other forms of lawful income to pay rent. You must treat these applicants the same as any other, evaluating them based on your standard screening criteria.
A 4.7/10 places Lake Lillian in the 50th percentile of Minnesota cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to Lake Lillian (4.7/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
