Minnesota Eviction Moratorium Off-Ramp

For Minnesota investors, the hope of the day when evictions return to normal has a roadmap.  It is long path, but at least we can see the end of the eviction moratorium.  The MN State Legislature passed a bill they call the “Eviction Moratorium Phaseout”.  This replaced the Executive Orders that Governor Walz was extending for almost 15 months.

The details are complicated.  We will all need to navigate through this together.  I suspect that none of this will be quick or simple.  Many new roadblocks have been put in place for landlords including pre-notifications of eviction.  Tenants can also now attend court via zoom and ask for continuances if they want to consult with legal aid which could drag evictions out for months.

legal disclaimer:  I am not an attorney.  Please obtain proper legal advise.

Here are some of the highlights (dates added based upon when law signed):

• On day 1 after legislation is signed (June 30, 2021), owners can only evict or issue notice to vacate for: serious endangerment, significant damage to property, serious criminal activity, non-payment of rent if the tenant: refuses to apply for assistance through COVID related rental assistance or refuses to help landlord apply for same assistance or refuses to provide landlord with proof that they applied
• On day 15, after legislation is signed (July 14, 2021), owners can evict or issue notice to vacate for material violations of the lease other than non-payment of rent
• On day 75 (September 13, 2021), Landlords can evict or issue notice to vacate for non-payment of rent IF the tenant is not eligible for emergency rental assistance
• On day 106 (October 13, 2021), Landlords can issue notice to vacate in month-to-month leases and issue non-renewal of leases at end of lease. Remember these will still need then notice period which may be 30 or 60 days.
• Lastly, if a tenant can produce proof that they have applied for COVID related rental assistance, the tenant has until June 2022 to complete that assistance.
• Various cities have pre-eviction notices ranging from 7 to 15 days for non-payment of rent. RMG is working to send these starting in July to all tenants on the 6^th of each month so we preempt the timeline the best we can.  This will result in “good” tenants that are simply paying late receiving these pre-eviction notices.
• The CDC extended their eviction moratorium until July 31 and that adds an additional layer of confusion into this mix.

My recommendation is that you hire an eviction attorney to handle all your evictions going forward.  There are too may traps and opportunities for you to lose your eviction claim on a technicality in this ever changing landscape.