Minnesota calls it the "Deed Tax," not a "transfer tax," but it functions the same way. Per Minnesota Statute 287.21 and confirmed on the MN Dept. of Revenue site (revenue.state.mn.us/deed-tax-rate), the statewide rate is 0.0033 of net consideration (sale price minus any liens/debt assumed by the buyer) — i.e., $1.65 per $500 of value, or 0.33%. Hennepin and Ramsey counties (Minneapolis and St. Paul, respectively) tack on an additional 0.0001 "Environmental Response Fund" (ERF) tax, bringing their effective rate to 0.0034 (0.34%), or $1.70 per $500. Properties transferred for less than $3,000 are exempt. Example: a $354,135 home (MN's approx. median price) would owe roughly $1,137 in deed tax statewide, slightly more in Hennepin/Ramsey.
Seller closing costs (excluding agent commission) run roughly 2-3% of sale price, dominated by the deed tax, title/closing fees, and prorated property taxes. When real estate agent commissions (typically 5.7%-5.9% combined) are included, total seller-side costs typically land around 6%-10%+ of sale price, with some 2025-2026 aggregator estimates citing totals near 11-12% when everything (commission + closing costs) is combined. Buyer closing costs (loan origination, appraisal, title insurance, recording fees, prepaid escrow/insurance) typically run about 2%-6% of purchase price, commonly cited as ~2%-5%.
Who typically pays: By statute the deed tax is legally the seller's responsibility (the party conveying/transferring the deed), and this is also the real-world market convention in Minnesota — sellers customarily pay it, similar to how sellers customarily pay the buyer's agent commission out of sale proceeds. However, MN Dept. of Revenue guidance and industry sources note the statute does not bar reassigning this cost in the purchase agreement, so in slow markets or competitive buyer situations it can be negotiated onto the buyer. Aside from the deed tax, standard MN convention has sellers paying agent commissions, their own title/closing agent fees, and prorated property taxes, while buyers pay their own lender/appraisal/inspection fees and buyer-side title insurance — consistent with typical U.S. practice, not a MN-specific quirk.
Key nuance: Minnesota's tax is officially named the "Deed Tax" (sometimes called "State Deed Tax"), not "transfer tax," though it serves the identical function and is often referred to informally as a transfer tax. The only known county-level variation is the additional 0.0001 (0.01 percentage point) Environmental Response Fund tax in Hennepin County (Minneapolis) and Ramsey County (St. Paul) — no other MN counties or cities are documented as having their own separate transfer/deed tax add-on. There is no known "mansion tax" or tiered/progressive transfer tax structure in Minnesota (unlike states such as NY or NJ) — it's a flat percentage regardless of price tier. Sources consulted: Minnesota Dept. of Revenue (revenue.state.mn.us/deed-tax-rate, official primary source), Minnesota Statute 287.21, and closing-cost industry aggregators (ListWithClever, HomeLight, Anytime Estimate, iBuyer, Edina Realty) for closing-cost percentage ranges and payment-convention context — these secondary sources are directionally consistent but should be treated as industry estimates rather than official figures.
Facts on this page reflect research current as of 2026-07-05. Programs, rates, and laws change — confirm current figures with the relevant state agency before relying on them.