Washington County, Minnesota Eviction Risk: Moderate

Washington County carries an average eviction-risk score of 4.8/10, placing it in the Elevated tier and ranking it 7th out of 87 counties in Minnesota, meaning only 6 counties in the state carry higher risk. For landlords and investors, that ranking is a meaningful flag: this is a suburban Twin Cities county with strong demographics on the surface, but the legal and market conditions here push operating risk above what most of the state sees. Average rent runs $1,777 per month against an average rent burden of 33.1%, a combination that puts a meaningful share of renters at financial stress each month.

Across the county's 25 cities, individual scores span from 4.3 to 5.2, an 1.8-point gap that matters enormously for where you place capital. With a total population of roughly 263,185, Washington County is not a homogenous suburban block, and treating it as one when evaluating a deal is a mistake. The variance inside the county is the real story for any landlord underwriting here.

The cities inside Washington County

At the high-risk end of the county, Lake Elmo scores 4.8/10, the county's single riskiest city, with a population of 13,140. Close behind are Forest Lake at 4.9/10 (population 20,729) and St. Paul Park also at 4.8/10. Hugo scores 4.8/10 (population 16,340), and Cottage Grove at 4.8/10 is the county's largest city after Woodbury, with 40,992 residents. These are not abstract numbers: higher scores in this tier reflect conditions that translate to slower collections, more contested filings, and tighter margins.

On the lower end of county risk, Mahtomedi comes in at 4.7/10 and Stillwater at 4.8/10. Even the county's largest city, Woodbury (population 78,305), sits at 4.7/10, a moderate figure but still above the state average for landlord-friendliness. Risk here is hyper-local, and a single zip code change can move the needle by nearly two full points on this scale.

State-level laws that apply here

Minnesota eviction laws state law governs the eviction process for every landlord operating in Washington County. Under Minn. Stat. § 504B.291, nonpayment of rent requires a 14-day notice before filing. Material lease violations and month-to-month terminations both require a 30-day notice under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135. Minnesota eviction laws does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and there is no statewide rent control or preemption statute in effect. Landlords should also note that source of income is a protected class under Minnesota law, administered by the Minnesota Department of Human Rights.

On the cost side, the Minnesota eviction process carries a court filing fee of $310 to $410, a sheriff lockout fee of $55 to $150, and attorney fees typically ranging from $750 to $3,000, depending on complexity. An uncontested case resolves in roughly 30 to 60 days; a contested matter can run 60 to 150 days. Those timelines, combined with Minnesota eviction costs that compound quickly, mean a single problem tenancy can represent a substantial cash-flow loss. Landlords who are unfamiliar with Minnesota security deposit limits and notice requirements before placing a tenant are the ones who most often absorb those costs unnecessarily.

Washington County's average poverty rate of 5.1% and a renter share of just 19% suggest a market that skews toward ownership, but the city grid above shows that low county-level averages can mask pockets of meaningfully elevated risk, and the cities where you are most likely to find available rental inventory are not always the ones with the lowest scores.