📚 Minnesota Law Library

Makes the U.S. Constitution, federal statutes, and treaties the supreme Law of the Land. State law that conflicts is preempted. Tenants benefit when federal law is the floor — states can add rights but cannot remove federal ones.

Procedural due process requires notice and an opportunity to be heard before depriving you of a property interest. Your lease is a property interest. Public housing tenants have constitutional due process rights before eviction.

You have a Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable searches in your home — even as a tenant. Police need a warrant to enter your unit (Payton v. New York, 1980). Landlords cannot consent to a police search on your behalf (Chapman v. United States, 1961).

Establishes the Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8). Section 8 pays the difference between 30% of your income and fair market rent. You can move and take your voucher ("portability"). Units must meet HUD Housing Quality Standards.

All citizens have the same right to lease property regardless of race. Racial discrimination in housing has been illegal since 1866 — 102 years before the FHA.

If a landlord denies tenancy based on a screening report, they must give you an adverse action notice with the CRA's name and your right to a free copy and dispute process.

Landlords of pre-1978 housing must disclose known lead paint hazards and provide the EPA pamphlet before lease signing. No safe blood lead level exists (CDC). Chipping lead paint is an emergency habitability violation. Penalties up to $18,000 per violation.

Active duty military can terminate a lease with 30 days notice after deployment orders. Landlords cannot evict without a court order during active duty. Interest on pre-service obligations capped at 6%.

Unlawful to coerce, intimidate, threaten, or interfere with any person exercising Fair Housing rights. Filing an FHA complaint and then having your landlord raise rent is itself a separate federal violation.

Prohibits discrimination in any credit transaction — including rental applications — based on race, sex, national origin, religion, marital status, age, or receipt of public assistance.

The Federal Trade Commission Act prohibits "unfair or deceptive acts or practices" in commerce. This covers false rental ads, misleading move-in fee disclosures, and bait-and-switch unit pricing. File complaints at ftc.gov/complaint.

Every lease contains an implied covenant that the landlord will maintain the premises in reasonable repair, in compliance with health and safety laws. This covenant cannot be waived. Minimum heat: 68°F from October 1–April 30.

Landlord must return the deposit (plus interest) within 21 days after tenancy ends, with a written itemized statement if deductions are taken. Wrongful withholding = deposit + $500 punitive damages + attorney fees. No limit on deposit amount, but interest required if held over 1 year.

If a landlord fails to repair a habitability violation, a tenant may bring a rent escrow action in district court. The court deposits rent into escrow and may order repairs, rent reduction, or lease termination. The tenant does NOT stop paying rent — they pay into court escrow.

Landlord may not raise rent, reduce services, or begin eviction because a tenant complained to government, organized a tenant union, or exercised a legal right. Retaliation is presumed if adverse action occurs within 90 days of a protected activity.

Evictions require a court order. Self-help eviction — changing locks, removing property, shutting off utilities — is illegal regardless of what the lease says. Actual damages, punitive damages, and attorney fees attach to the landlord.

A landlord must give reasonable notice (24 hours minimum in practice) before entering — except genuine emergencies. Repeated unauthorized entry is grounds for a rent escrow action.

Victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking may terminate a lease early without penalty by providing written notice and documentation (protective order, police report, or signed statement).

Late fees cannot be charged before rent is 5 days late. Late fees cannot exceed 8% of the overdue rent. Any lease clause charging more is void as a matter of law.

Approved by voters November 2021. Limits rent increases to 3% per year for most units. Exemptions: new construction built after the ordinance effective date; owner-occupied buildings of 3 units or fewer.

Minneapolis requires landlords to have just cause to evict. Just cause includes: nonpayment, material lease violation, owner move-in with relocation assistance. Simply wanting a tenant out is not just cause.

Voters approved in 2021. Unlike Minneapolis, applies to new construction too. Allows CPI-based adjustments and administrative exemptions. Subject to ongoing legal and legislative challenges — verify current status at stpaul.gov.

Landlords must have just cause to evict tenants who have lived in the unit for 3+ years. Just cause includes: nonpayment, lease violation, owner occupancy. "I just want you out" is not legally sufficient.

The Supremacy Clause makes the U.S. Constitution, federal statutes, and treaties "the supreme Law of the Land." State law that conflicts with federal law is preempted (void). Tenants benefit when federal law is the floor, not the ceiling — states can add rights but cannot remove federal ones.

The Equal Protection Clause prohibits states from denying any person equal protection of the laws. It applies to: public housing agencies, government-owned housing, and courts enforcing evictions. It does NOT directly apply to private landlords — but the Fair Housing Act fills that gap by statute.

Procedural due process requires the government to give notice and an opportunity to be heard before depriving you of a protected property interest. Your lease is a property interest. Public housing tenants have constitutional due process rights before eviction.

You have a Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable searches in your home — even as a tenant. Police need a warrant to enter your unit (Payton v. New York, 1980). Landlords cannot consent to a police search on your behalf (Chapman v. United States, 1961). Warrantless entries for "inspections" by code enforcement require your consent or an administrative warrant.

The Fifth Amendment prohibits taking private property for public use without just compensation. For tenants: (1) eminent domain of your building triggers relocation assistance rights (Uniform Relocation Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4601); (2) rent control is NOT a taking — courts have consistently held it's a valid exercise of police power.

The First Amendment protects tenant organizing, posting notices, petitioning government, and speaking to media about housing conditions. While this directly restrains only government action, retaliation against tenants for protected speech violates federal and state anti-retaliation statutes.

The Contracts Clause prohibits states from passing laws that substantially impair existing contract obligations. Your signed lease is a protected contract. Mid-lease rent increases or unilateral rule changes that retroactively void lease protections must pass constitutional scrutiny.

Shelley v. Kraemer (1948) held that state courts cannot enforce racially restrictive covenants. Thousands of Minnesota deeds still contain these clauses — they are void and unenforceable (Minn. Stat. § 507.18). You can have them discharged for free at your county recorder.