News & Updates
This page contains the latest content we have posted. If you are looking for a specific resource or reference, check out our Resource Library. If you are looking for information about our work on a specific topic, you can look on the Our Work page.
For press inquiries, please email info@hjcmn.org.
HJC supports community call for equity and affordability at Lexington and University
The conversation around the two vacant lots at the intersection of Lexington Parkway and University Avenue is two years in the making, encapsulating the tension between community needs and developer priorities. Housing Justice Center works to protect and expand affordable housing, so a proposed development close to transit with no meaningful, substantiated commitment to affordability was a natural place for HJC to intervene.
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HJC files class action tenant lawsuit to stop construction harassment in New Brighton
In April 2020, Housing Justice Center represented a group of New Brighton tenants, along with HOME Line, in filing a class-action lawsuit against QT Property Management (QT), its owner Jason Quilling and the City of New Brighton. HJC argued QT engaged in “construction harassment,” a tactic increasingly used by landlords to oust low-income renters by making living conditions unbearable, remodel the building, and bring in new tenants for much higher rents.
read moreOpening the Door: Tenant Screening and Selection
When an apartment becomes available in the Twin Cities, who gets to move in? And perhaps more importantly, who doesn’t?
To answer those questions, we partnered with Family Housing Fund to publish a new report examining the methods and systems used by landlords to screen and select tenants. We found that the current methods and systems used are often unpredictable and can result in disparate treatment, the consequences of which extend beyond prospective tenants and their families to communities and society as a whole.
read more
HJC files an amicus brief supporting Minnesota’s eviction moratorium
This past December, Minnesota’s statewide eviction moratorium became the target of a preliminary injunction motion. Two Twin Cities property owners, Heights Apartments and Walnut Trails, filed their suit in September, seeking to invalidate Governor Walz’ Executive Order No. 20-79 for several alleged violations of their constitutional rights.
read moreHJC in the News
11/26/21 — Star Tribune
Rent escrow requirement prevents tenants from challenging poor living conditions, lawyers say
11/17/21 — Minnesota Reformer
St. Paul rent control advocates push back on ‘disaster narratives’ as developers rethink projects
9/14/21 — Star Tribune
State owns failure to get aid to renters
7/20/21 — Star Tribune
Renting can be tough for reformed gang members
5/25/21 — MPR News
Tenants worry and landlords fume over eviction ban
4/29/21 — Minnesota Reformer
Where is the rental assistance?
4/5/21 — CapRadio
Nixing single-family zoning: will it make housing more affordable?
3/31/21 — Minnesota Spokesman Recorder
Wilder Foundation charged with selling out its mission
3/30/21 — Minnesota Reformer
St. Paul residents launch rent stabilization campaign to cap increases at 3%
3/30/21 — KARE 11
St. Paul group aims to put rent control on ballot
12/8/20 — Star Tribune
Landlords go to court to fight Gov. Walz’s eviction moratorium
5/12/20 — Star Tribune
Minnesota legal advocates race to prepare for eviction court in COVID-19 world
2/23/20 — Pioneer Press
Karen teen outreach leads to neighborhood complaint against St. Paul landlord