Stevens County, Minnesota Eviction Risk: Moderate

Stevens County sits in west-central Minnesota with a total population of 6,749 and earns a moderate eviction risk score of 4.3/10 on the Eviction Risk Map. That places the county 63rd out of 87 Minnesota counties - meaning 62 counties carry higher risk and only 24 are less risky. By that measure, Stevens is in the lower-risk third of the state, though the underlying financial pressures on renters are real and worth monitoring.

Renters make up 43.2% of all households in Stevens County, a notably high share for a rural county of this size. The average asking rent sits at $934 per month, and the average rent burden - the share of income households spend on rent - is 30.4%, just above the 30% threshold that housing economists use to define cost-stress. Combined with an average poverty rate of 13.3%, a meaningful slice of renter households are operating with little financial cushion. A single missed paycheck or unexpected expense can move a tenant toward delinquency and, eventually, an eviction filing.

Within the county, Morris is by far the largest community at a population of 5,128 and carries a score of 4.5/10. Morris anchors the county economically and is home to the University of Minnesota Morris campus, which contributes to the above-average renter share. Chokio posts the county's highest risk reading at 4/10 despite a population of only 392, reflecting a combination of local rent burden and poverty indicators. Hancock (population 859, score 3.4/10) and Donnelly (population 277, score 3.8/10) round out the mid-tier communities, while Alberta - the smallest city in the county at 93 residents - posts the lowest score at 3.2/10. The tight score range of 4.5 to 4.8 across all five cities signals fairly uniform conditions rather than a single distressed hotspot pulling the county average up.

On the legal side, Minnesota evictions are governed by Minn. Stat. § 504B (Landlord and Tenant). Landlords must give 14 days notice for nonpayment of rent under Minn. Stat. § 504B.291, and 30 days notice for material lease violations or month-to-month terminations under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135. Court filing fees range from $310 to $410, sheriff lockout fees add another $55 to $150, and attorney costs - if the case is contested - can run $750 to $3,000. An uncontested eviction resolves in roughly 30 to 60 days; a contested case stretches to 60 to 150 days. Minnesota also protects source of income as a fair housing category, administered through the Minnesota Department of Human Rights - a protection landlords should factor into tenant screening decisions. There is no statewide rent control, no just-cause requirement, and no local preemption statute in play for Stevens County.

Stevens County's Moderate score reflects a rural county where renter share and rent burden are higher than the size of the market might suggest, driven largely by Morris's student-adjacent rental base and limited housing stock across smaller communities.