Market rankings · Minnesota

Real estate businesses in Minnesota

Markets across Minnesota ranked by the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, with competitor counts and household spending for each.

Listings: 8,410; 615 chain locations (7%)
Official establishments: 5,741; +11.5% since 2019
Household spending a year: $35B; On rent and homeowner costs
Listings per 10k households: 36.4; 5% below the U.S.
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100): 96; 4% below the U.S.
Rank among states: #44 of 51; Market score 36 · Lower middle

A site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings around any address in Minnesota by name and distance, and the spending within reach.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

As of September 2026, map listings count 8,410 real estate businesses in Minnesota. Of those, 615 are chain locations, or 7%, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 36.4, 5% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

Households in Minnesota spend about $35B a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $15,162 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 4% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Minnesota was 5,741 in 2023, up 11.5% from 2019. That is one for every 402 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 15.8% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 75 SBA-backed loans worth $27M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Minnesota.

Among the 50 states and DC, Minnesota ranks #44 for real estate businesses, with a Groundwork market score of 36 (lower middle). Of the 9 scored metro areas in or partly in Minnesota, the Duluth metro area scores highest (51). Of the 19 scored small-town markets in or partly in Minnesota, the Wahpeton area scores highest (68).

Every market in Minnesota for real estate businesses

Download the ranking (CSV)

Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in Minnesota, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.

Metro areas

Metro areas reaching Minnesota, ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Duluth, MN-WI	51	293	24.3	130	+0.2%	#173 of 387
Grand Forks, ND-MN	50	106	24.3	130	+0.8%	#177 of 387
2Rochester, MN	50	301	32.4	110	+2.0%	#183 of 387
Fargo, ND-MN	41	369	33.4	98	+7.7%	#269 of 387
La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN	38	225	31.2	103	+0.4%	#298 of 387
Sioux Falls, SD-MN	38	548	44.7	75	+9.5%	#306 of 387
3St. Cloud, MN	36	275	35.2	92	+3.0%	#322 of 387
4Mankato, MN	36	146	36.0	90	+1.2%	#325 of 387
5Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	33	6,260	42.4	87	+2.6%	#352 of 387

Small-town markets

Small-town markets reaching Minnesota, ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)	Population growth	U.S. rank
Wahpeton, ND-MN	68	11	11.6	277	0.0%	#57 of 536
1Austin, MN	58	34	21.6	147	+2.3%	#156 of 536
2Winona, MN	56	46	22.7	138	+1.8%	#184 of 536
3Red Wing, MN	54	37	18.8	176	+1.3%	#210 of 536
4New Ulm, MN	51	17	15.4	201	−1.5%	#250 of 536
5Worthington, MN	51	15	19.5	160	+0.6%	#253 of 536
6Fairmont, MN	44	18	20.4	147	−2.8%	#330 of 536
7Albert Lea, MN	43	26	20.2	154	−1.5%	#348 of 536
8Faribault-Northfield, MN	40	73	31.1	107	+4.2%	#396 of 536
9Fergus Falls, MN	38	68	27.0	117	+1.6%	#415 of 536
10Owatonna, MN	38	46	30.4	109	+0.2%	#416 of 536
11Hutchinson, MN	36	45	29.6	111	−0.3%	#445 of 536
12Bemidji, MN	36	56	30.8	102	+1.8%	#447 of 536
13Marshall, MN	36	33	32.6	98	+1.0%	#449 of 536
14Grand Rapids, MN	35	47	25.3	122	+0.9%	#456 of 536
15Willmar, MN	35	64	36.4	89	+2.3%	#459 of 536
16Alexandria, MN	34	75	42.8	76	+2.6%	#467 of 536
17Detroit Lakes, MN	33	40	27.8	115	+0.9%	#476 of 536
18Brainerd, MN	32	188	44.5	72	+4.3%	#493 of 536

Counties

Counties in Minnesota, ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Dodge County, MN	79	10	12.4	282	+2.3%	#41 of 2,229
2Fillmore County, MN	71	10	11.5	280	+1.4%	#186 of 2,229
3Kanabec County, MN	68	10	15.2	205	+3.6%	#278 of 2,229
4Nicollet County, MN	66	19	14.6	230	−0.7%	#337 of 2,229
5Clay County, MN	64	36	13.6	240	+3.6%	#403 of 2,229
6Carlton County, MN	64	20	14.2	229	+1.4%	#407 of 2,229
7Sibley County, MN	63	10	16.9	195	+3.6%	#459 of 2,229
8Polk County, MN	61	11	8.9	354	−1.8%	#523 of 2,229
9Faribault County, MN	61	8	13.2	233	−0.1%	#531 of 2,229
10Wadena County, MN	61	8	13.2	224	+1.9%	#533 of 2,229
11Sherburne County, MN	61	64	18.0	203	+6.8%	#538 of 2,229
12Pine County, MN	60	23	18.7	166	+5.5%	#575 of 2,229
13Watonwan County, MN	59	6	14.2	223	+2.0%	#608 of 2,229
14Todd County, MN	59	18	17.6	174	+3.0%	#624 of 2,229
15Pope County, MN	58	7	14.1	227	+0.8%	#651 of 2,229
16Carver County, MN	58	95	23.1	176	+6.6%	#668 of 2,229
17Morrison County, MN	58	29	20.6	151	+1.9%	#678 of 2,229
18Lake County, MN	57	6	12.1	258	−1.6%	#701 of 2,229
19Mower County, MN	56	34	21.6	147	+2.3%	#781 of 2,229
20Meeker County, MN	55	17	18.2	175	+0.7%	#823 of 2,229
21Isanti County, MN	55	34	20.9	160	+7.3%	#831 of 2,229
22Hubbard County, MN	54	17	19.0	165	+4.6%	#865 of 2,229
23Winona County, MN	53	46	22.7	138	+1.8%	#935 of 2,229
24Cottonwood County, MN	52	6	13.0	242	−1.0%	#958 of 2,229
25Goodhue County, MN	52	37	18.8	176	+1.3%	#975 of 2,229

Show all 87 counties

Counties in Minnesota, ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score, continued
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)	Population growth	U.S. rank
26Benton County, MN	51	26	15.6	205	+0.9%	#1,024 of 2,229
27Chisago County, MN	51	52	24.3	147	+4.3%	#1,041 of 2,229
28Houston County, MN	50	16	19.7	167	−2.3%	#1,070 of 2,229
29Wabasha County, MN	49	20	21.8	153	+0.7%	#1,130 of 2,229
30Koochiching County, MN	48	7	11.9	261	−3.7%	#1,160 of 2,229
31Wright County, MN	48	174	32.2	115	+11.1%	#1,192 of 2,229
32Chippewa County, MN	47	7	13.7	225	−1.6%	#1,202 of 2,229
33Martin County, MN	45	18	20.4	147	−2.8%	#1,339 of 2,229
34Pennington County, MN	45	16	25.8	123	−1.8%	#1,347 of 2,229
35Brown County, MN	44	17	15.4	201	−1.5%	#1,374 of 2,229
36Nobles County, MN	44	15	19.5	160	+0.6%	#1,378 of 2,229
37Freeborn County, MN	44	26	20.2	154	−1.5%	#1,383 of 2,229
38Scott County, MN	44	203	36.9	108	+5.1%	#1,417 of 2,229
39Roseau County, MN	42	12	19.1	165	−0.3%	#1,501 of 2,229
40Mille Lacs County, MN	42	27	25.3	124	+4.8%	#1,517 of 2,229
41Le Sueur County, MN	42	36	30.9	112	+2.9%	#1,522 of 2,229
42Anoka County, MN	41	456	33.2	109	+4.7%	#1,571 of 2,229
43Steele County, MN	40	46	30.4	109	+0.2%	#1,618 of 2,229
44Rice County, MN	40	73	31.1	107	+4.2%	#1,620 of 2,229
45Aitkin County, MN	39	16	22.2	133	+3.5%	#1,663 of 2,229
46Cass County, MN	39	31	24.1	130	+4.2%	#1,666 of 2,229
47Otter Tail County, MN	39	68	27.0	117	+1.6%	#1,676 of 2,229
48Dakota County, MN	39	654	37.5	100	+3.9%	#1,687 of 2,229
49Washington County, MN	39	526	49.8	78	+6.9%	#1,700 of 2,229
50Redwood County, MN	37	11	17.5	173	−1.0%	#1,768 of 2,229
51Itasca County, MN	37	47	25.3	122	+0.9%	#1,782 of 2,229
52McLeod County, MN	37	45	29.6	111	−0.3%	#1,791 of 2,229
53Olmsted County, MN	37	261	39.0	93	+2.3%	#1,803 of 2,229
54Beltrami County, MN	36	56	30.8	102	+1.8%	#1,840 of 2,229
55Lyon County, MN	36	33	32.6	98	+1.0%	#1,843 of 2,229
56Waseca County, MN	35	17	22.7	139	−1.5%	#1,859 of 2,229
57St. Louis County, MN	34	240	27.5	114	+0.2%	#1,917 of 2,229
58Kandiyohi County, MN	34	64	36.4	89	+2.3%	#1,932 of 2,229
59Becker County, MN	33	40	27.8	115	+0.9%	#1,969 of 2,229
60Stearns County, MN	33	249	40.6	80	+3.6%	#1,985 of 2,229
61Douglas County, MN	31	75	42.8	76	+2.6%	#2,050 of 2,229
62Blue Earth County, MN	28	127	46.0	69	+2.1%	#2,132 of 2,229
63Crow Wing County, MN	28	157	53.4	60	+4.3%	#2,136 of 2,229
64Ramsey County, MN	26	776	35.1	97	−1.8%	#2,160 of 2,229
65Hennepin County, MN	25	3,008	55.8	66	+0.2%	#2,182 of 2,229
Renville County, MN	Not scored	1	1.7	1,895	−2.3%
Jackson County, MN	Not scored	9	20.5	156	−1.3%
Swift County, MN	Not scored	3	7.3	419	−0.4%
Stevens County, MN	Not scored	9	23.1	140	+0.8%
Rock County, MN	Not scored	10	24.8	129	−1.7%
Yellow Medicine County, MN	Not scored	3	7.4	434	−0.2%
Pipestone County, MN	Not scored	6	15.1	206	−1.7%
Marshall County, MN	Not scored	0	0.0	n/a	−2.5%
Clearwater County, MN	Not scored	1	3.0	1,015	+1.0%
Murray County, MN	Not scored	8	22.2	143	−2.9%
Lac qui Parle County, MN	Not scored	5	17.1	188	+0.2%
Wilkin County, MN	Not scored	1	3.8	819	−2.9%
Norman County, MN	Not scored	3	11.1	279	−1.6%
Grant County, MN	Not scored	1	4.0	788	−0.1%
Cook County, MN	Not scored	10	36.9	88	−1.4%
Lincoln County, MN	Not scored	1	4.1	760	−0.7%
Mahnomen County, MN	Not scored	1	5.3	551	−4.1%
Big Stone County, MN	Not scored	4	18.7	169	−2.0%
Kittson County, MN	Not scored	0	0.0	n/a	−3.7%
Red Lake County, MN	Not scored	0	0.0	n/a	+0.1%
Lake of the Woods County, MN	Not scored	5	27.5	120	0.0%
Traverse County, MN	Not scored	0	0.0	n/a	−6.8%

Markets with fewer than 5 real estate businesses on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Minnesota?

Minnesota has 8,410 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 615 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 5,741 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 11.5% from 2019. Another 20,999 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Minnesota spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $35B a year, or $15,162 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 8,410 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 4% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,307,955 households in Minnesota and national spending patterns by income.

How does Minnesota compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Minnesota has 36.4 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 96, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Minnesota would have about 8,078, against 8,410 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 402 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 11.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.

Which market in Minnesota has the highest market score for real estate businesses?

Among 9 scored metro areas in or partly in Minnesota, the Duluth metro area scores highest, at 51 (upper middle). Among 19 scored small-town markets in or partly in Minnesota, the Wahpeton area scores highest, at 68 (upper middle). Among 65 scored counties in Minnesota, Dodge County scores highest, at 79 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Minnesota scores 36 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #44 of the 50 states and DC.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Minnesota. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

Real estate agents and brokers6,687 listings
Property management648 listings
Mortgage brokers and lenders924 listings
Home inspectors151 listings

Screening a site or an acquisition in Minnesota?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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