Eviction filings shoot up in Minnesota amid ICE surge

Eviction filings in Minnesota have shot up to the highest level this decade, particularly in Hennepin County, according to a Minnesota Star Tribune analysis of court filings.

The increase in landlords seeking to have tenants evicted started in December, just as thousands of federal immigration agents descended on the state, prompting many immigrants to essentially shelter in place, resulting in lost wages and lost business for merchants.

It’s too soon to tell how much of a factor Operation Metro Surge might be. It often takes months of rent not being paid before landlords file for eviction in court, so problems for tenants could have predated the crackdown and be rooted in other economic factors. Still, the increase widened in January, coinciding with the largest influx of agents and their most aggressive federal tactics — a presence that pervaded life for many immigrant communities.

Federal officials say they sent more than 3,000 agents to Minnesota and arrested 4,000 “illegal aliens” since Dec. 1. However, the agency has not released a list of all the people it has arrested.

January eviction filings in Hennepin County were more than double the average for that month over the previous three years. December was also about 40% above average.

Statewide, this is the highest number of evictions in any given month in the past decade. The only other months that came close were June and July 2022, when pandemic eviction moratoriums lifted. January is still 12% higher than those two months.

Hennepin County is driving the surge, and Ramsey County also saw a spike, going from just over 300 eviction filings last January to about 450 this year.

Will Lehman, the county’s area manager for homelessness prevention, said inquiries and requests for rent help have not yet increased beyond typical minor fluctuations.

But there’s normally a lag between current stressors on budgets and the point where people start getting eviction filings.

In Minneapolis, landlords can’t file the eviction notice until at least 30 days have passed since a rent payment was missed. State law requires a minimum of 14 days.

So eviction filings could be expected to start surging higher later in February and in the months following, since not all property managers initiate the eviction process immediately, Lehman said.

Minnesota Multi Housing Association CEO Cecil Smith said his members reported “sporadic units with challenges” but not widespread “distress.” The association represents 2,200 owners and operators of 305,000 apartments statewide.

On possible causes for the spike in eviction filings, Smith pointed to a report showing Minnesota led the nation in monthly construction job losses from November to December, followed by Texas and California.