The story of this market
The typical home in Watonwan County, Minnesota sells for about $178,577, or $127 per square foot.
Prices are up +4.93% from a year ago, so sellers still have some momentum. Homes take about 68 days to sell, which is slow. Over the long run, values in this county have grown 54% since 2000. The biggest natural hazard here is winter weather, which FEMA rates very high. HUD's fair market rent for a two-bedroom is $1,014 a month.
HUD sets the fair market rent for a 2-bedroom at $1,014 a month. FEMA's National Risk Index rates overall hazard risk here as Relatively High.
Price climate
Every year of price change, 2000–2025
-2.9%
2025
Each stripe is one year's median price change across the area's census tracts (FHFA repeat-sales index). Deep blue is a strong gain year, red a falling year. Best: 2021 (+13.1%). Worst: 2009 (-4.9%). Hover to read a year.
Monthly price momentum
Home values since 2015
+1.5%
MN · past 12 months
Freddie Mac House Price Index, single-family homes, monthly through 2026-08. Each line starts at 100 in January 2015, so a reading of 180 means prices are up 80% since then.
Rent benchmark
Fair market rent by size
$1,261
3-bed / month
HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal 2027, for this county. A typical rent for a modest unit, used to set housing-voucher payments.
Neighborhood price trend
Long-run price trend, 2000–2025
-2.9%
2025 change
FHFA repeat-sales index, median of 3 census tracts in this county (2000 = 100). Bars are each year's median change.
Natural hazard exposure
The area's risk shape
89
Relatively High
FEMA National Risk Index. Each spoke is a hazard ranked nationally, where 100 is the most exposed. Expected annual loss: $7,974,764.
Mortgage activity
Home lending in this county
77.3%
2018 approval rate
| Year | Applications | Loans made | Approval | Investor share | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 291 | 170 | 77.3% | 13.3% | $145,000 |
CFPB Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records: every mortgage application reported by lenders for homes in this county. Approval rate is approved ÷ decided (withdrawn and incomplete files excluded). Investor share and home value are the median census tract.
Watonwan County, Minnesota
Watonwan County's housing market remains affordable with a price-to-income ratio of 2.5x, significantly lower than national averages. Inventory is extremely limited, which has contributed to a modest year-over-year price appreciation of 4.93%.
No ARED distress-ledger coverage for this county yet — the foreclosure ingest rotates the national county directory, and filings appear here once the county's posted notices are read. Key-figure check: no independent anchor retained yet — first-researched cycles establish the anchor baseline this pass.
Select a city to expand its ZIP intel reports beneath · 4 cities · 6 ZIP reports
Median prices moved up 0.0% year over year.
Homes spend a median of 82 days on market with 0.0 months of supply — a fast-moving market.
0% of listings have cut prices · homes sell at 6.66% of asking — demand is holding steady.
no recorded foreclosure-ledger notices (0.0 per 10,000 residents) · unemployment 0.0% · poverty 13.2% — a stable, low-distress profile.
ACS 2024 5-year estimates. Aggregate published statistics for this county — never individual records, and never an attribute of any individual property or resident.
Deterministic aggregate of 4 researched ZIP reports of 6 — sales_count-weighted (population fallback); per point, children lacking the value or its weight are excluded. Tax rates, sentiment and context notes are tier-native and never roll.
No researched properties in this county yet — the property base layer populates as property research runs, and each property feeds its ZIP's roll-up.
researched Oct 4
researched Sep 23
researched Sep 23
researched Sep 23
researched Sep 23
researched Sep 23
| 56062 | Madelia | $192,236 | $146 | — | 57 | — | — | — | 18 | $775 | researched Oct 4 |
| 56115 | Balaton | $185,000 | $115 | +2.5% | 45 | 98% | 15% | 4 | 12 | $1,079 | researched Sep 23 |
| 56120 | Butterfield | $154,700 | $98 | +4.4% | 85 | 96.5% | 15% | 6.2 | 12 | $685 | researched Sep 23 |
| 56160 | Odin | $189,900 | — | — | 441 | 100% | — | — | — | $1,014 | researched Sep 23 |
| 56162 | Ormsby | $264,000 | $112 | -2.4% | 142 | 94% | 12% | 18 | 4 | $1,292 | researched Sep 23 |
| 56181 | Welcome | $145,000 | $105 | +2.1% | 88 | 97.5% | 15% | 4 | 12 | $900 | researched Sep 23 |
Figures are each ZIP report's own latest research — the county roll-up aggregates them sales_count-weighted (population fallback); ZIPs cycle quarterly.
The county economy is supported by industrial development including the Tony Downs Food Company, ST Industries, Westin Automotive, and Swift-Eckrich Inc.
The local economy is anchored by food processing and manufacturing sectors, with major employers including Tony Downs Food Company and ST Industries.
Data retrieved from Census Reporter and QuickFacts
applies when — Property containing a homestead subject to foreclosure
The mortgagor has the right to designate a portion of the property as a homestead to be sold and redeemed separately, provided it conforms to local zoning and is compact.
Minnesota Statutes 582.041
applies when — Parcels designated as condominium units
Each unit constitutes a separate parcel for tax purposes. If a declaration is recorded at least 30 days before a tax installment is due, the taxing authority must split the taxes among the units.
Minnesota Statutes 515A.1-105
Allows non-judicial foreclosure. Requires notice of sale to be mailed to the mortgagor at least 14 days before the sale date and published in a newspaper. Mortgagors have specific redemption rights following the sale.
Minnesota Statutes Chapter 580
Property tax is calculated by applying a class rate to the parcel's estimated market value to determine tax capacity, then multiplying by the local tax rate. For residential homesteads (Class 1a), the rate is 1.00% for the first $500,000 of market value and 1.25% for value exceeding $500,000.
2021 Classification Rate Table, Minnesota Department of Revenue
≈ $1,786/yr on a $178,577 median
Governance registry — every jurisdiction re-researches on a rolling 90-day cycle. Property reports compose these inherited burdens into a per-parcel ledger with conditional determinations. Informational only — not legal advice.