Real estate · County · Minnesota
Real estate businesses in Polk County, MN
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Polk County, MN, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 61 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #523 of 2,229 scored counties
#8 of 65 scored counties in Minnesota
- Listings
- 11
- 1 chain location (9%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $168.7M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $13,650 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 354
- 3.5 times the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.9
- 77% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 30,545
- −1.8% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Polk County
The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Polk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Polk County comes to about $168.7M a year: $13,650 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 3.5 times 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.
There are 11 real estate businesses on map listings in Polk County as of September 2026. One of them (9%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.9, 77% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Polk County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 1,236 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Official counts list 57 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show Polk County declined 1.8% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Polk County is 61 (upper middle), #523 of 2,229 scored counties and #8 of 65 scored counties in Minnesota. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Polk County compares
The same measures for Minnesota and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Polk County | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.9 | 36.4 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 354 | 96 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 1,236 | 402 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +11.5% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.8% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $13,650 | $15,162 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $73,107 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 61 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 46
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 57Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 111 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 39The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Polk County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Polk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 30,545−1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 12,360
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,971 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 16
- Median household income
- $73,107+23.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,262
- Median home value
- $222,800
- Jobs located here
- 11,668
- Daytime population
- 27,729Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Polk County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Polk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Minnesota for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with Polk County marked.
Top counties in Minnesota
| 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 |
Other business types in Polk County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Polk County, MN?
As of September 2026, map listings count 11 real estate businesses in Polk County. One of them (9%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 57 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Polk County, MN spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $168.7M a year, or $13,650 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 11 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 3.5 times 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. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,360 households in Polk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Polk County, MN compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Polk County has 8.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 77% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 354, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Polk County would have about 39, against 11 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,236 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is Polk County, MN growing?
Population estimates put Polk County at 30,545 people in 2025, down 1.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 12,360 households. Median household income in Polk County is $73,107, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 23.2%, before inflation.
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. Polk County scores 61 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #523 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Polk County. 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.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Polk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Polk County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Polk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.