Eviction filings spike in January as COVID money dries up: ‘Folks don’t have a cushion'

Eviction filings surged at the start of 2025 to levels not seen in some Minnesota communities since before the coronavirus pandemic, leaving housing advocates scrambling to keep people in their homes.

The spike in court filings happened across the state with the epicenter in the Twin Cities metro, new data shows. In January, the five core metro counties saw up to double the number of eviction cases filed compared to 2024’s monthly average.

There were more than 2,100 cases filed in January statewide, with 763 in Hennepin County and 390 in Ramsey County. Filings in February were still elevated but not as high as in January, according to data through Feb. 25 from Minnesota district courts.

The surge comes as money available to low-income residents for emergency rental assistance has declined dramatically from post-pandemic highs. Despite a new metro sales tax dedicated to housing that took effect in 2023, cities and counties have less help to offer renters now than during the pandemic.

Housing advocates fear the change is driving some landlords to file for eviction sooner because they realize there are limited chances to recoup what they’re owed. Advocates also say high housing costs and inflation continue to squeeze Minnesota’s poorest residents.

“It’s the money, at this point. Life happens. Folks don’t have a cushion,” said Rachael Sterling, an attorney and spokeswoman for HOME Line, a nonprofit that helps tenants facing eviction.

She noted that 90% of evictions are for nonpayment of rent. For many households, a job loss or an unexpected expense can mean there’s simply not enough money to afford their housing.

“The need is clearly outstripping the availability,” Sterling said of emergency rental assistance.

But Cecil Smith, CEO of the Minnesota Multi Housing Association, doesn’t believe the January jump in evictions is necessarily a sign of more to come. He noted that most eviction cases end in a repayment plan, rather than someone losing their home, and local governments have not yet received a full year of funding from the new sales tax.

Smith added that recent wage growth has outpaced rising rents and Minnesota’s per capita eviction rate — the number of filings per rental unit — is low compared to much of the country.

“I think we need more data before we can say there is an actual trend,” Smith said. “We are a low eviction state, relatively speaking.”

In 2023, when Democrats had complete control of Minnesota government, they passed a two-year budget with $1 billion in mostly one-time housing aid and added a new 0.25% sales tax that raised nearly $65 million last year for housing.

The legislative money provided a big boost in state aid for households struggling with their rent. That state funding, coupled with other sources of aid, helped many weather the end of the pandemic moratorium on eviction filings, but the money is nearly gone.

For instance, Hennepin and Ramsey counties saw the amount of available rental aid roughly cut in half since the evictions moratorium ended in 2022.

Metro counties and cities are not dedicating all of the sales tax to bailing out renters. Much of it is being spent to repair existing affordable housing and build new units to address Minnesota’s statewide deficit of about 100,000 so-called deeply affordable rental units for people making 30% of the area’s median income.

But it takes time to build new affordable housing units, and many people continue to pay more than they can afford for rent.

Ramsey County’s Family Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Program receives about 1,600 requests for housing aid a month, and on average each tenant owes $3,600 in back rent.

Half of evictions filed in the county are concentrated in four ZIP codes in and around St. Paul, and there are significant racial disparities. About 63% of those facing eviction are Black, while just 12% of the county’s population is Black.

Ramsey County housing staff say they do their best to keep as many people as possible in their homes, but for many workers wages have not kept up with costs.

“We are having to turn people away,” said Keith Lattimore, director of housing stability. “One-time funding may get people back to sustainability, but when they haven’t increased their household income, other factors come in and they are slowly right back underwater.”

There were so many eviction cases filed in Ramsey County in January that attorneys couldn’t keep up, said Sonja Woodward, housing program manager for the Volunteer Lawyers Network. The Second Judicial District no longer has a dedicated referee to handle evictions, and Woodward said the daily case docket is flooded.

“It’s not sustainable,” she said.

In housing court, having an attorney can make a big difference. Woodward said about 75% of the cases her group works on end with a payment plan for back rent that allows the tenant to stay in place.

Across the river, Hennepin County’s Adult Representation Services has a staff of lawyers dedicated to handling eviction cases that has helped meet the recent surge in filings.

Terrance Hendricks, the department’s principal attorney, said it was clear property owners have become more methodical about filing for evictions. New protections for renters, a decline in rental assistance and an increase in out-of-town property owners who may be less likely to work with struggling tenants are some of the factors driving those decisions.

“People are renting places they can’t afford because they just don’t have any other option,” Hendricks said.

It’s too soon to know if January’s spike is a harbinger of what’s to come. Government leaders and housing advocates across Minnesota have their eyes on St. Paul and Washington, D.C., waiting to see what lawmakers will do.

Advocates are hopeful that Minnesota’s narrowly divided Legislature will agree to some sort of increase in ongoing money for rental assistance. But a big boost is unlikely, with both Republicans and Democrats eyeing spending cuts.

In Washington, things are more unpredictable with President Trump’s administration freezing grants and slashing spending. Local leaders worry unexpected budget cuts could hurt both current programs and the network of nonprofits helping low-income families weather times of crisis.

“Our housing challenge across the state has continued to deepen,” said Rep. Michael Howard, DFL-Richfield, who led the push for the $1 billion housing budget in 2023. He added that while the sales tax is a helpful source of ongoing revenue, more needs to be done.

In addition to pushing for funding increases, Howard is also part of a bipartisan effort to reform zoning rules to ease the building of affordable homes. He admits it’s a controversial topic that can struggle to win support, especially in the suburbs.

“Public investments alone won’t solve our housing shortage,” Howard said. “We need policy changes.”