Property Data for All 87 Counties — Even the Ones That Don't Publish It
U-Spatial's agreement with the Minnesota Geospatial Information Office (MnGeo) gives the University system access to aggregated parcel data covering counties that don't otherwise make their parcel data public.
What This Data Unlocks
A public statewide parcel dataset already exists on the MN Geospatial Commons, built from counties that have opted in to share their data openly. U-Spatial's agreement goes a step further, adding many counties that haven't opted into the open dataset, plus an aggregated statewide layer that includes them.
For research spanning property records, land use, tax parcels, or ownership boundaries across the state, that gap between "publicly available" and "actually complete" often matters.
Data Benefits
More Complete Than What's Public
Many counties don't share their parcel data on the open MN Geospatial Commons. U-Spatial's agreement with MnGeo adds those counties to what's available to the University community.
One Statewide Layer, Not 87 Separate Ones
Beyond individual county files, an aggregated statewide dataset combines all included counties into a single layer. This is useful for any project that needs to work across county lines.
Available System-Wide
Access extends to the full University of Minnesota system, not just the Twin Cities campus, covering research, teaching, administration, and outreach use.
Getting Access
This dataset is available directly to the University of Minnesota system community for research, teaching, administration, and outreach, at no cost.
Steps
- Fill out the request form to request access to the secure storage location.
- Once approved, connect to the secure storage location to access the aggregated statewide dataset.
Questions about what's included for your county of interest? Contact the U-Spatial Help Desk.
Data Resources
Request Access to MN Parcel Data
The form to request access to the secure storage location.
Open form →Public Statewide Parcel Dataset
The openly available parcels dataset on the MN Geospatial Commons, for counties that have opted in.
View dataset →MN County Parcels FAQs
Quick answers to what people ask us most about accessing and using this data.
Is all of this data publicly available elsewhere?
No — that's the point of this dataset
A public version exists on the MN Geospatial Commons, but only for counties that have opted to share openly. U-Spatial's agreement adds many that haven't, plus a more complete statewide layer.
Who can access this data?
The University of Minnesota system community
Access extends to research, teaching, administration, and outreach use across the University of Minnesota system, not just the Twin Cities campus.
How current is the parcel data?
Varies by county
Since this dataset aggregates data from many individual counties, update frequency varies by county. Contact the Help Desk to confirm currency for a specific county before starting a project.
Can I share this data with collaborators outside the University?
Check with the Help Desk first
Because this data includes counties that don't otherwise make their parcels public, confirm any external sharing with the Help Desk before distributing it beyond the University system.
What if I only need data for counties that are already public?
Use the public statewide dataset on the Commons instead
If your project only needs counties that already share parcel data openly, the public statewide parcel dataset on the MN Geospatial Commons doesn't require a request form.
What It Costs
Free for the UMN System Community
This aggregated parcel dataset, including counties that don't otherwise share data publicly, is available at no cost to the University of Minnesota system community for research, teaching, administration, and outreach.
Costs Beyond the University
This isn't a public dataset — access to counties that haven't opted into open data comes through U-Spatial's specific agreement with MnGeo. Those outside the University community can use the public statewide parcel dataset on the MN Geospatial Commons for counties that have opted in, or should contact individual county assessor's offices directly for parcel data from counties that haven't.
Want to Request Parcel Data Access?
Fill out the request form to get connected to the secure storage location.