Transaction coordinator · Minneapolis–St. Paul
Transaction coordinator in Minneapolis–St. Paul: TISH, county taxes and costs
For Twin Cities agents: how the two cities' Truth in Sale of Housing programmes differ, the extra deed and mortgage tax in Hennepin and Ramsey, the associations and MLS data behind the metro and what coordination costs.
DeedSpring makes transaction-coordination software and publishes this guide. It has no office in Minneapolis–St. Paul. Agents use it online, wherever they work.
Minneapolis–St. Paul at a glance
- Minneapolis TISH
- Required before showing; valid two years or one sale
- Saint Paul TISH
- Required before marketing; valid 365 days
- Buyer-assumed repairs
- Minneapolis: within 90 days of closing
- County surcharge
- 0.0001 on deed and mortgage tax, Hennepin and Ramsey
- 2025 metro median
- $390,000
- Associations
- Minneapolis Area REALTORS and Saint Paul Area REALTORS
What does a Twin Cities transaction coordinator handle?
Across the metro, a coordinator works from the same Minnesota REALTORS purchase agreement and the same state disclosure rules as anywhere in Minnesota. The Minnesota page in this guide covers those, along with the closing agent license that keeps a TC out of settlement work. What sets a Minneapolis or Saint Paul file apart is the city housing evaluation, which has to exist before the home is shown, and the extra county tax in Hennepin and Ramsey.
Both cities call it Truth in Sale of Housing, or TISH, but they run it differently. For a listing-side coordinator that difference decides the first week of work, because the evaluation has to be ordered before the photos go live.
How does Truth in Sale of Housing work in Minneapolis?
In Minneapolis a TISH evaluation is needed for single-family houses, duplexes, townhouses and first-time condominium conversions. The city is blunt about timing: a full Truth in Housing report has to exist before the property can be shown. The seller hires an evaluator licensed by the city, the report is filed online, and a copy must be on display for buyers at showings.
The evaluation report lists any required repairs and is valid for two years or one sale. If those repairs are not done by closing, the buyer takes them on. The buyer signs an acknowledgment of responsibility, submits it to the city within one day of closing and must finish the repairs within 90 days. A buyer-side TC should put both of those dates on the calendar the day the purchase agreement is signed.
How is Saint Paul's TISH different?
Saint Paul describes its report as "disclosure only". It applies to single-family homes, duplexes, condominiums and townhomes, and the evaluation must be completed before the property is marketed. The report has to be available for any potential buyer to view within three calendar days of listing, and the city code requires a valid report to be conspicuously displayed at the property while it is for sale.
In a single-family home the only item the report makes the seller fix is an operational hard-wired smoke detector. The report is good for 365 days and for one sale by the owner named on it. Failing to comply with the chapter is a misdemeanor under section 189.19, and that covers the owner's agent and the buyer's agent as well as the owner.
Truth in Sale of Housing, Minneapolis and Saint Paul
| Rule | Minneapolis | Saint Paul |
|---|---|---|
| Required before | Showing the property | Marketing the property |
| Condominiums | First-time conversions only | Included |
| Report valid for | Two years or one sale | 365 days and one sale |
| Repairs | Buyer may assume: notice within 1 day of closing, repairs within 90 days | Disclosure only, except a hard-wired smoke detector in single-family homes |
What taxes are different in Hennepin and Ramsey counties?
Minneapolis sits in Hennepin County and Saint Paul in Ramsey, and both counties add an Environmental Response Fund tax of 0.0001 to the state deed tax of 0.0033. The Department of Revenue's worked example puts the deed tax on a $200,000 sale at $680 in either county. The same 0.0001 is added to the 0.0023 mortgage registry tax, which the borrower owes, so a buyer's closing cost estimate in these counties should include it. Suburbs in Anoka, Dakota, Washington and the other metro counties pay the base rates.
Which associations and MLS cover the Twin Cities?
Minneapolis Area REALTORS and the Saint Paul Area Association of REALTORS serve the metro, and western Wisconsin too. Minnesota REALTORS builds its market figures from NorthstarMLS and other participating MLSs. A TC who also takes Hudson or River Falls files should remember that the Wisconsin side uses that state's own forms and rules.
How busy is the Twin Cities market?
According to Minnesota REALTORS, the Twin Cities metro median price rose 2.6% in 2025 to $390,000, a record, compared with $355,000 for the state as a whole. The association said the metro remained in sellers' market territory, though less so than in recent years.
What does a Twin Cities transaction coordinator cost?
Coordinators in the metro, as elsewhere, mostly bill by the file. In October 2026 we looked at 21 public price cards from TCs across the US: a single side ran $300 to $550, and most quoted no fee at all when the sale did not go through. The per-file fee calculator sets that against your own closing count.
When you interview a metro TC, ask whether they work in both cities and how they handle the two TISH programmes. Ask who orders the evaluation on a listing, and how they track a buyer's acknowledgment and repair deadline in Minneapolis after closing. The answers separate coordinators who know the metro from those who only know the form.
Freelance TC, TC company or DeedSpring: which fits a Minneapolis–St. Paul agent?
The table sets the usual options side by side. A good freelance TC is worth every dollar on a messy file. What most agents are really paying for, though, is someone who never misses a date and always chases the lender. Software does that on every file at once.
Ways to get transaction coordination in Minneapolis–St. Paul
| DeedSpring | Freelance TC | Outsourced TC company | In-house TC | Virtual assistant | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What you pay | $19–$25 per closing, or $15 a month for one | About $300–$550 per side | About $350–$500 per side, some with monthly minimums | A salary, paid whether or not files close | By the hour |
| Who does the work | Software that reads the contract and drafts the chases for you to approve | One person, often a licensed agent | A coordinator from the firm's team | Your own employee | An assistant you direct task by task |
| Contract deadlines | Set from the executed contract, with every open file checked hourly | Kept in their own calendar | Kept in the firm's system | Kept in yours | Yours to set and watch |
| When volume jumps | Add closings, with no one to hire | Capped by one person's file load | The firm adds staff | You hire again | More hours |
To see what the gap means across a year of files, put your numbers into the TC fee per file calculator.
Questions agents ask about transaction coordinators in Minneapolis–St. Paul
Do you need a TISH report to sell a house in Minneapolis?
Yes, for single-family houses, duplexes, townhouses and first-time condominium conversions. The city says the full report must exist before the property can be shown.
How long is a Saint Paul TISH report valid?
For 365 days from issuance and for one sale by the owner named on the report. It must be available to potential buyers within three calendar days of listing.
What happens if Minneapolis TISH repairs aren't done before closing?
The buyer signs an acknowledgment of responsibility, submits it to the city within one day of closing and must complete the required repairs within 90 days of closing.
Is the deed tax higher in Minneapolis and Saint Paul?
Slightly. Hennepin and Ramsey counties add a 0.0001 Environmental Response Fund tax to the 0.0033 state deed tax, so a $200,000 sale pays $680 instead of $660.
How much does a transaction coordinator cost in the Twin Cities?
Most charge a flat fee per file, and published one-side prices nationally ran from $300 to $550 in October 2026. DeedSpring costs $15 a month for one closing, or $19 to $25 a closing on Standard.
Compare plans on the DeedSpring pricing page.