Minnesota Rent Increase Laws for Landlords (2026)

Updated September 2026 · Written for self-managing landlords · Not legal advice

In short: Minnesota has no rent-increase law. To raise the rent you use the notice for changing a month-to-month tenancy, which is 30 days' notice, and there is no cap on the amount.

What Minnesota law requires

Minnesota has no statute about raising rent. That surprises most landlords, and it is the single most misreported fact in this area - plenty of sites will quote you a “Minnesota rent increase notice law” that does not exist.

What Minnesota does have is the notice required to end or change a month-to-month tenancy, and that is the mechanism you have to use: raising the rent is legally a change of terms. The period is 30 days' notice, in writing, under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135.

Citation: Minn. Stat. § 504B.135 · read the source

How much can you raise it in Minnesota?

There is no statutory ceiling. No statewide cap. Notice must be at least as long as the interval between rent days and never more than three months.

Only four US jurisdictions cap the size of an increase - California, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia. Minnesota is not one of them, so the amount is a business decision, not a legal one. The usual constraint is practical: a tenant who leaves over an increase costs you a turnover, and a turnover costs more than the increase was worth.

Local rules override this. St. Paul's voter-approved ordinance caps most annual increases at 3% with an exception process. Minneapolis authorized rent stabilization by charter amendment but has not enacted an operative cap.

Can you raise rent mid-lease in Minnesota?

No. A fixed-term lease fixes the rent for the term. An increase takes effect at renewal, or on a month-to-month tenancy after proper notice. The exception is a lease that contains its own escalation clause agreed at signing.

Serving the notice so it holds up

Most rent increases that fall apart fall apart on the date, not the amount: the notice went out too late, or nobody can prove when it went out. Count the days from delivery, not from the day you wrote it, and keep the proof.

LandlordPro generates the notice against the state's rule, dates it, records when it was sent, and carries the new rent onto the rent roll on the right day so the ledger and the notice agree.

Generate the notice, keep the proof

Free for 2 properties and up to 4 units. No credit card.

Start free

Frequently asked questions

How much notice does a landlord have to give to raise rent in Minnesota?

30 days in writing. Minnesota has no rent-increase statute, so that is the notice required to change a month-to-month tenancy under Minn. Stat. § 504B.135.

Is there a limit on how much rent can be raised in Minnesota?

No. Minnesota sets no cap on the size of an increase. Only California, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia cap the amount.

Can rent be raised during a lease in Minnesota?

No, unless the lease itself provides for it. A fixed-term lease fixes the rent for the term; an increase belongs at renewal or on a month-to-month tenancy after notice.

Does a Minnesota rent increase notice have to be in writing?

Yes.

Do local rules change this in Minnesota?

St. Paul's voter-approved ordinance caps most annual increases at 3% with an exception process. Minneapolis authorized rent stabilization by charter amendment but has not enacted an operative cap.