Housing data for Elbow Lake, MN
Elbow Lake, MN has an estimated 1,301 residents and 533 homes (US Census Bureau, 2020–2024 American Community Survey).
It is a city in Grant County.
31.3% of households rent.
The median gross rent is $742 a month.
Figures last updated on .
- Residents
- 1,301 (±141)
- Housing units
- 533 (±63)
- Households that rent
- 31.3%
- Median gross rent
- $742
- Residents since 2015–2019
- +2.7%
What stands out in Elbow Lake
Homes in buildings of 5 or more units: 19.1% (±6.4 points) in Elbow Lake, higher than in Grant County (7.0%).
Households that rent: 31.3% (±6.0 points) in Elbow Lake, higher than in Grant County (20.8%).
Median home value: $126,900 (±$10,848) in Elbow Lake, lower than in Grant County ($191,000).
Working from home: 7.4% (±3.6 points) in Elbow Lake, lower than in Grant County (14.6%).
- Types of homes in Elbow Lake
- Renters and owners in Elbow Lake
- Home values in Elbow Lake
- Commute and cars in Elbow Lake
Housing in Elbow Lake at a glance
- Median rent: $742 median gross rent a month
- Rent by bedrooms: $738 median gross rent, 2 bedrooms (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Rent burden: 42.7% of renters pay 30% or more of income
- Renters and owners: 31.3% of households rent
- Income and affordability: $59,792 median household income
- Home values: $126,900 median home value
- Homeowner costs: $1,250 median monthly cost with a mortgage
- Property taxes: $1,500 median real estate taxes a year
- Types of homes: 19.1% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
- Bedrooms: 49.7% of homes have 3 or more bedrooms
- Age of homes: 81.9% of homes were built before 1980
- Vacancy rate: 11.7% rental vacancy rate (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Heating fuel: 46.0% heat with propane
- Commute and cars: 22.5 minutes average trip to work
- Growth: +2.7% residents since 2015–2019
- How long people stay: 27.8% moved in since 2020
- Crowding and facilities: 4.7% of homes have more than 1 person per room (Small sample: wide margin of error)
Elbow Lake against Grant County, its state and the nation
| Elbow Lake | Grant County | Minnesota | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 1,301 (±141) | 6,127 (exact) | 5,739,445 (exact) | 334,922,499 |
| Housing units | 533 (±63) | 3,137 (±44) | 2,545,030 (±1,535) | 143,775,355 |
| Households that rent | 31.3% (±6.0 points) | 20.8% (±2.2 points) | 27.8% (±0.2 points) | 34.8% |
| Median gross rent | $742 (±$78) | $797 (±$78) | $1,280 (±$7) | $1,413 |
| Median household income | $59,792 (±$11,626) | $73,917 (±$4,554) | $89,062 (±$409) | $80,734 |
| Median home value | $126,900 (±$10,848) | $191,000 (±$17,224) | $329,300 (±$903) | $332,700 |
| Median real estate taxes (a year) | $1,500 (±$215) | $1,783 (±$123) | $3,357 (±$10) | $3,119 |
| Built before 1980 | 81.9% (±11.3 points) | 66.2% (±4.4 points) | 52.1% (±0.3 points) | 49.7% |
| Average commute | 22.5 minutes (±2.0) | 23.2 minutes (±1.1) | 22.7 minutes (±0.1) | 26.4 minutes |
| Households with broadband | 94.2% (±3.4 points) | 88.7% (±1.9 points) | 91.6% (±0.1 points) | 91.0% |
| Median age of residents | 37.6 years (±3.9) | 43.2 years (±0.9) | 38.8 years (±0.1) | 38.9 years |
Elbow Lake covers 1.4 square miles of land, about 940 residents per square mile (Census Bureau Gazetteer).
How Elbow Lake has changed since 2015–2019
| 2015–2019 | 2020–2024 | Amount of change | Verdict | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 1,267 (±120) | 1,301 (±141) | +2.7% | Not a measurable change |
| Housing units | 641 (±60) | 533 (±63) | −16.8% | Measurable decrease |
| Median gross rent | $768 (±$185) | $742 (±$78) | −3.4% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median home value | $80,400 (±$4,750) | $126,900 (±$10,848) | +57.8% | Up after inflation |
| Median household income | $57,746 (±$8,280) | $59,792 (±$11,626) | +3.5% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median owner cost with a mortgage | $1,007 (±$210) | $1,250 (±$100) | +24.1% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median real estate taxes | $1,468 (±$151) | $1,500 (±$215) | +2.2% | Down after inflation |
| Households that rent | 27.5% (±5.0 points) | 31.3% (±6.0 points) | +3.8 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
| Rental vacancy rate | 5.3% (±7.7 points) | 11.7% (±12.1 points) | +6.4 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.
Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.
The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.
Crime reported to police in Grant County
Elbow Lake has no police department of its own in the FBI’s figures, so this is the figure for Grant County as a whole.
In 2025, the police departments that report for Grant County recorded 98 violent and 33 property crimes per 100,000 residents.
A county-wide figure describes the whole county, not this place; crime varies from one community to the next.
Places near Elbow Lake
| Place | Distance | Median gross rent | Median home value | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sanford Township | 1.6 mi | $1,542 | $212,500 | 29.9% |
| Elbow Lake Township | 4.6 mi | — | $260,700 | 8.2% |
| Pomme de Terre Township | 5.9 mi | — | $232,800 | 6.3% |
| Barrett | 6.4 mi | $1,337 | $131,900 | 26.6% |
| Wendell | 6.7 mi | $743 | $82,500 | 15.6% |
| Lien Township | 7.0 mi | — | $208,300 | 0.0% |
| Stony Brook Township | 7.2 mi | — | $219,400 | 5.1% |
| Erdahl Township | 7.6 mi | $1,125 | $403,700 | 9.7% |
Places in Minnesota most like Elbow Lake
| Place | Median gross rent | Median home value | Median household income | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fertile | $823 | $129,500 | $67,125 | 28.1% |
| Springfield | $820 | $122,300 | $59,434 | 26.8% |
| Karlstad | $619 | $126,300 | $64,000 | 25.6% |
| Lyle | $575 | $111,800 | $58,269 | 27.8% |
| Walnut Grove | $621 | $90,000 | $58,125 | 33.0% |
| Bovey | $948 | $122,800 | $64,083 | 28.3% |
Matched on rent, home value, income, the share who rent, the age of the homes, the share in apartment buildings and the commute, each measured against the spread across Minnesota.
HUD Fair Market Rent for Elbow Lake, fiscal year 2027
| Studio | 1 bedroom | 2 bedrooms | 3 bedrooms | 4 bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $706 | $775 | $1,014 | $1,260 | $1,695 |
HUD income limits for Elbow Lake, fiscal year 2026
| Household size | Extremely low (30%) | Very low (50%) | Low (80%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $20,600 | $34,300 | $54,900 |
| 2 people | $23,550 | $39,200 | $62,750 |
| 3 people | $27,320 | $44,100 | $70,600 |
| 4 people | $33,000 | $49,000 | $78,400 |
| 5 people | $38,680 | $52,950 | $84,700 |
| 6 people | $44,360 | $56,850 | $90,950 |
| 7 people | $50,040 | $60,800 | $97,250 |
| 8 people | $55,720 | $64,700 | $103,500 |
These are the limits HUD sets for its housing programs in the Grant County, MN, where HUD’s median family income for fiscal year 2026 is $95,600.
A program can use its own limits; tax-credit and local programs often do.
Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.
Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.
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Questions about Elbow Lake
What is the average rent in Elbow Lake, MN?
The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Elbow Lake is $742 (±$78) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.
Are renters in Elbow Lake rent-burdened?
42.7% of renting households in Elbow Lake pay 30% or more of their income in gross rent, the share housing researchers usually call rent-burdened (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
How many renters are there in Elbow Lake?
Elbow Lake has an estimated 151 (±38) renting households, 31.3% of its occupied homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the median household income in Elbow Lake?
The median household income in Elbow Lake is $59,792 (±$11,626) a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average home value in Elbow Lake, MN?
The Census Bureau publishes the median: $126,900 (±$10,848) for owner-occupied homes in Elbow Lake (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average mortgage payment in Elbow Lake?
The Census Bureau publishes total owner costs rather than the mortgage alone: the median for owners with a mortgage in Elbow Lake, MN is $1,250 (±$100) a month, including taxes, insurance and utilities.
Is Elbow Lake growing?
In Elbow Lake, the number of residents went from 1,267 in 2015–2019 to 1,301 in 2020–2024 (+2.7%), not a measurable change.
Sources
- Demographic and Housing Estimates (DP05), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Selected Housing Characteristics (DP04), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Selected Economic Characteristics (DP03), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Median Real Estate Taxes Paid by Mortgage Status (B25103), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Selected Social Characteristics (DP02), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Total Population (B01003), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- Median Gross Rent (B25064), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Elbow Lake city, Minnesota
- HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal year 2027: Grant County, MN
- HUD Income Limits, fiscal year 2026: Grant County, MN
- Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, all items, US Bureau of Labor Statistics: annual averages 2019 and 2024
- US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files
To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Elbow Lake city, Minnesota (place:18458, in state:27).
Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).
The 2015–2019 figures are B01003_001E, B01003_001M, B25064_001E, B25064_001M from the 2019 release.
The API needs a free key.
DP05_0001E, DP05_0001M, DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP03_0062E, DP03_0062M, DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.
Figures last updated on .