The cost of housing is higher than ever in Minnesota, and the dream of homeownership is slipping out of reach for more and more families. Cuts to federal housing supports, threats to the Housing Choice Voucher program, and tariffs on essential building materials are threatening housing affordability across the state – and now is the time to ensure that every Minnesotan has a safe and stable place to call home. The Senate DFL has followed up on historic investments in 2023 and 2024 by supporting essential housing resources–including family homelessness prevention, workforce housing, and new pathways to help families own a home for the first time.
Key Provisions:
Family Homelessness Prevention (FHPAP – $8.35m)
Funding for family homelessness prevention will help keep families stably housed, especially in light of threats from the Trump administration to cut the Housing Choice Voucher Program (Sec. 8), and both covid-era rental assistance and one-time state funding expiring. Family homelessness is at an all-time high in Minnesota, and seniors are increasingly the fastest growing population experiencing homelessness. 8-10k Minnesotans experience homelessness on any given night.
First-Generation Downpayment Assistance ($4m)
Funding downpayment assistance for first-generation homebuyers is essential to closing racial disparities and building new paths towards homeownership. MN’s racial homeownership gap is one of the worst in the nation, with a current rate of 77% homeownership for white households compared to 29% for Black households. A new $4m appropriation was split evenly between the Community Based First-Gen. DPA program and MN Housing’s Agency DPA program.
Challenge Program ($2m)
New funding to the Challenge Program, which is MN Housing’s most flexible source of funding for housing development and preservation, will help to build more badly needed affordable housing across the state. Home costs are at all-time highs in MN, with the median cost of a new single-family home having reached over $540k, and the average monthly payment (PITI) on a median priced home having reached $2,551 in 2024.
Housing Infrastructure Bonds ($50m)
New housing infrastructure bonds will also help to finance affordable housing development statewide. Minnesota has a shortage of over 100,000 units generally, and a gap of 57,355 units for homes which are affordable at or below 30% of area median income. There are currently no counties in MN where the median income is enough to afford the median priced home.
Greater MN Infrastructure ($2m)
Grants to reimburse cities for up to 50% of the costs of public infrastructure for workforce housing will especially help small communities in Greater Minnesota grow and attract new families. This program was established in 2023 and is heavily oversubscribed.
Workforce Homeownership ($2m)
New funding for the statewide development of workforce and affordable homeownership opportunities will particularly help small cities in Greater Minnesota strengthen their economic development.
MN Housing Scoring Updates
New standards require MN Housing to award additional points in their competitive scoring process for housing development to projects in jurisdictions which have adopted certain zoning and land use reforms – including allowing multifamily development, restricting parking minimums or aesthetic mandates, allowing the development of duplexes or ADUS, and others. These bonuses sunset in 2029.
Others
Other housing provisions which passed in 2025 include several minor updates to landlord-tenant provisions around protections for survivors of domestic violence and heating requirements, a temporary update to the prevailing wage rate for carpenter work on certain LIHTC projects, a required report by MMB related to the ability of public housing authorities to access federal programs, several recommendations from the 2024 task force on the long-term stability of affordable housing, and others.
Did Not Pass:
Housing Choice Voucher (Sec. 8) Eviction Moratorium
A proposal to establish a temporary moratorium on evictions for nonpayment of rent by tenants with federal Housing Choice Vouchers (Sec. 8) did not advance this session. The pause would have only applied if HUD withheld a tenant’s rental assistance, at which point filing an eviction would have been prohibited for a three- month period following the first late rent payment. The provision responded to signals from the Trump administration that they are intending to broadly cut or eliminate federal housing assistance, including the Housing Choice Voucher program. According to HUD, there are 32,358 households with Housing Choice Vouchers currently leased in Minnesota. This language was added to SF 1417, the Judiciary Omnibus bill, but did not advance in conference due to cost.
Zoning and Land Use
Numerous proposals related to zoning and land use reform did not pass this session, including:
- The “Minnesota Starter Home Act” (SF 2229), which proposed to enact several reforms toencourage the development of duplexes, townhomes, and accessory dwelling units.
- The “More Homes, Right Places Act” (SF 2231), which would have created several new requirements centered around increasing the development of higher density housing in new mixed-use zoning districts.
- The “Reducing Rent Inflation Act” (SF 2286), which sought to increase the development to multifamily housing in commercial areas.
- The “People Over Parking Act” (SF 1268), which would have prohibited political subdivisions fromrequiring a minimum number of off-street parking spaces.
- The “Skinny Zoning Package” (SF 2229, as amended in State Gov.) – a pared- down final version of the 2025 zoning package which sought to enact changes related to aesthetic mandates, HOAs, and administrative review processes.
HOA Reform
A major bill aimed at reforming laws around Homeowners Associations and Common Interest Communities did not advance this year. The bill included a wide variety of reforms from the 2024 Working Group on Common Interests Communities, including new standards around conflicts of interest, voting and governance, limits on fines and fees, newly required disclosures, dispute resolution requirements, and others. The bill passed off the Senate Floor, but did not advance through committee in the House. (SF 1750)
Senior Rent Stabilization
A variety of bills related to new protections for manufactured home park residents did not advance this session, including a requirement that rent increases be reasonable, a cap on late fees, requirements for utility repairs and itemized billing, new protections around the use of online portals, a new resident opportunity to purchase requirement, and other reforms. (SF 1652)
Manufactured Housing
A variety of bills related to new protections for manufactured home park residents did not advance this session, including a requirement that rent increases be reasonable, a cap on late fees, requirements for utility repairs and itemized billing, new protections around the use of online portals, a new resident opportunity to purchase requirement, and other reforms. (SF 2691)
Constitutional Amendment
A proposed constitutional amendment to create a dedicated 3/8% sales tax for affordable housing did not pass this year. If approved by voters, the amendment would have created three funds dedicated to supporting homeownership, renters, and community household stabilization. This bill was heard informationally in Housing early in session, but did not advance further. (SF 2621)