HomeMinnesotaWashington County
Washington County, Minnesota: commercial real estate data.
Washington County, Minnesota has a population of 276,238 across 384 square miles, up 6.1 percent since the 2020 census base. County output reached $17.08 bn in 2024, 6,542 establishments operate here, and the SBA record carries 514 7(a) approvals worth $201.1 m.
123 sourced county values · tier FULL · 11 sections · underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency
Washington County
How many people live in Washington County
- Population276,238
- Households105,577
- Average household size2.62
- Median household income$115,345
- Median age39.8
- Median gross rent$1,710 per month
- Median owner-occupied home value$422,000
- Home value to household income3.7 times
- Annual rent as a share of median income17.8 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher49.1 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree17.4 percent
- Adults 25 and over188,684
- Population under 1866,194
- Share under 1824.0 percent
- Population 65 and over45,973
- Share 65 and over16.6 percent
- Working age population, 18 to 64164,071
- Civilian labor force148,883
- Unemployment rate3.4 percent
- Labor force participation, adults 18 and over70.9 percent
- Rank by population among Minnesota counties5th of 87
- Rank by population among US county-equivalents261st
Washington County is the 5th largest of 87 Minnesota counties by population. A median home costs 3.7 times median household income, which is an affordable ownership market by national standards. Residents under 18 outnumber those 65 and over, at 24.0 percent against 16.6 percent, a household formation profile rather than a retirement one.
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Washington County
Is Washington County's population growing?
- Population change since the 2020 census base6.13 percent
- Census 2020 base population267,557
- Births, 20242,775
- Deaths, 20242,077
- Natural change, 2024698
- Net domestic migration, 20243,019
- Net international migration, 2024885
- Total net migration, 20243,904
- Cumulative net domestic migration, 2021 to 202410,324
- Rank by growth among US county-equivalents392nd
The county has grown 6.13 percent since the 2020 census base. Migration contributed more to 2024 change than births over deaths, so demand here follows people arriving rather than families forming.
US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
Washington County
Where are people moving to Washington County from?
- Tax returns filed by households arriving9,950
- People arriving, from those returns17,784
- Adjusted gross income arriving$874.2 m
- Net adjusted gross income movement$0
- Average income of an arriving household$87,864
- Largest single originWashington County Non-migrants (106,920 households)
- Largest single destination (106,920 households)
| Origin | Households | People | Adjusted gross income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington County Non-migrants | 106,920 | 227,976 | $14.03 bn |
| Ramsey County | 3,192 | 6,123 | $269.6 m |
| Other flows - Different State | 1,634 | 3,052 | $164.9 m |
| Hennepin County | 1,405 | 2,303 | $133.2 m |
| Dakota County | 1,105 | 1,977 | $88.1 m |
| Other flows - Midwest | 616 | 1,103 | $56.5 m |
| Anoka County | 575 | 1,035 | $50.6 m |
| Other flows - South | 495 | 949 | $52.0 m |
The largest single source of arrivals is Washington County Non-migrants, which is the catchment a retail or multifamily study should look at first.
US Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income county migration flows, 2021 to 2022 filing years.
Washington County
What is the Washington County economy?
- County GDP, 2024$17.08 bn
- County GDP, 2023$16.43 bn
- GDP change, 2023 to 20244.0 percent
- GDP change over five years40.8 percent
- Rank by GDP among Minnesota counties5th
- Rank by GDP among US county-equivalents295th
- GDP per resident$61,822
Output grew 4.0 percent in the latest year and 40.8 percent over five, which is the trend line a lender will read behind any single year figure.
US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional, table CAGDP2, CAGDP2, through 2024.
Washington County
Largest employers in Washington County
- Covered employment, annual average95,625
- Establishments reporting7,011
- Average annual pay$60,700
- Average weekly wage$1,167
- Sector 62, employment15,696
- Sector 62, average annual pay$63,438
- Sector 44-45, employment14,633
- Sector 44-45, average annual pay$36,080
- Sector 31-33, employment11,621
- Sector 31-33, average annual pay$82,373
- Sector 72, employment9,951
- Sector 72, average annual pay$24,279
- Sector 23, employment4,571
- Sector 54, employment4,183
| Sector | Employment | Establishments | Average annual pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sector 62 | 15,696 | 1,091 | $63,438 |
| Sector 44-45 | 14,633 | 711 | $36,080 |
| Sector 31-33 | 11,621 | 227 | $82,373 |
| Sector 72 | 9,951 | 478 | $24,279 |
| Sector 23 | 4,571 | 645 | $82,418 |
| Sector 54 | 4,183 | 844 | $87,121 |
| Sector 81 | 3,748 | 823 | $38,353 |
| Sector 42 | 2,914 | 278 | $99,293 |
The largest sector is the biggest private employer group at 15,696 jobs, 16.4 percent of covered employment. Average pay per job sits below median household income, so households here typically need more than one earner.
US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
Washington County
How many businesses are in Washington County?
- Establishments, all industries6,542
- Employment at those establishments95,631
- Annual payroll$5.38 bn
- Establishments per 1,000 residents23.7
These are counts of establishments physically operating in the county, not listings, so they are the supply side a feasibility study measures demand against.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Washington County
Building permits in Washington County
- Housing units authorised by permit, 20241,397
- Declared construction value permitted$493.2 m
- Single family units authorised1,261
- Multifamily units authorised136
- Multifamily share of units9.7 percent
- Average declared value per unit$353,012
- Units authorised per 1,000 households13.2
Multifamily is 9.7 percent of units authorised, so the pipeline is predominantly for sale product.
US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Washington County
SBA loans in Washington County (7(a) and 504)
- 7(a) approvals recorded514
- 7(a) gross approval dollars$201.1 m
- Average 7(a) approval$391,178
- Median 7(a) approval$150,000
- 10th percentile approval$25,000
- 90th percentile approval$1,000,000
- Largest single approval$5,000,000
- Jobs reported supported, 7(a)5,556
- Jobs per approval10.8
- Distinct 7(a) lenders active77
- Distinct industries receiving approvals177
- Median 7(a) term120 months
- Share of loans on real estate terms, 240 months or longer6.0 percent
- Loans on real estate terms31
- Loans on working capital terms, 120 months or shorter452
- Franchise loans70
- Franchise share of approvals13.6 percent
- Leading industry by approval countFitness and Recreational Sports Centers (19)
- Most active lenderU.S. Bank, National Association (92)
- 504 approvals recorded197
- 504 gross approval dollars$144.4 m
- Average 504 approval$732,746
- Median 504 approval$461,000
- Distinct CDCs active6
- 504 jobs per approval12.2
- 504 jobs per million dollars approved16.7
- Most active CDCTwin Cities-Metro Certified Development Company (101)
- 7(a) share of SBA approvals72.3 percent
- Combined SBA approval dollars$345.4 m
The average approval of $391,178 sits well above the median of $150,000, so a small number of large deals is pulling the mean up. The median is the better guide to what a typical borrower here actually gets. Only 6.0 percent of approvals run on real estate terms, so SBA credit here is mostly working capital and equipment rather than property acquisition.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30. US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Washington County
SBA loan default and charge-off rates in Washington County
Do SBA loans in Washington County get paid back?
- Loans with a final outcome recorded124
- Paid in full113
- Charged off11
- Charge off rate on resolved loans8.9 percent
- Status: Paid in full113
- Status: Exempt from disclosure324
- Status: Charged off11
- Status: Cancelled46
- Status: Committed, not yet disbursed20
Of the 124 loans that have reached a final outcome, 8.9 percent were charged off. This is computed only over resolved loans, because a loan still running has not yet succeeded or failed and counting it either way would be wrong.
Compare against the national and state SBA charge-off rates, computed the same way over resolved loans only.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Washington County
SBA lending by place in Washington County
- Places in the county with recorded lending28
- SAINT PAUL, approvals117
- STILLWATER, approvals78
- Woodbury, approvals77
- FOREST LAKE, approvals43
- COTTAGE GROVE, approvals41
- Lake Elmo, approvals39
| Place | Approvals | Gross approval dollars |
|---|---|---|
| SAINT PAUL | 117 | $44,310,100 |
| STILLWATER | 78 | $27,544,800 |
| Woodbury | 77 | $37,102,000 |
| FOREST LAKE | 43 | $15,361,700 |
| COTTAGE GROVE | 41 | $6,450,800 |
| Lake Elmo | 39 | $22,693,800 |
| Hugo | 30 | $9,353,400 |
| Oakdale | 26 | $10,257,700 |
SAINT PAUL accounts for 117 approvals against 78 in STILLWATER. County level figures average over that gap, which is why a site decision is made at the submarket rather than the county.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Washington County
How large is Washington County?
- Land area384 sq mi
- Rank by land area among Minnesota counties84th of 87
- Width, east to west13.4 mi
- Height, north to south38.1 mi
- Geographies sharing a boundary4
- Residents per square mile of land719
- Establishments per square mile17.04
US Census Bureau county boundary geometry, TIGER, adjacency computed from shared boundary vertices, TIGER county boundaries. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year. US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Every item below could be filled with a plausible figure. None of them is. On a page a lender may read, a number that cannot be traced is worse than an absence, so the absences are named.
- No NFIP communities are listed for this county in the FEMA Community Status Book.
- Flood zone record counts are not held. The flood coverage export has not landed, so no count is shown rather than an estimated one.
- Traffic counts resolve in the platform, not in this dataset, so no AADT figure is printed here.
- Zoning is in build. Parcel level zoning is not published on this page.
Feasibility studies
When a Washington County site needs a document a lender will accept.
The same data layer behind this page is the one the studies are written from. A study for a Washington County site starts with the figures you are reading, carrying the same source and period into the credit file.
- Population276,238
- Households105,577
- Average household size2.62
- Median household income$115,345
- Median age39.8
Common questions
Washington County questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Washington County, Minnesota?
276,238, in 105,577 households, ranking 5th of 87 Minnesota counties. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Is Washington County's population growing?
The population has grown 6.13 percent since the 2020 census base. In 2024 there were 2,775 births against 2,077 deaths, with net migration of 3,904. Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
What is the median household income in Washington County?
$115,345. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $422,000, which is 3.7 times income, and median gross rent is $1,710 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
How many businesses are in Washington County?
6,542 establishments, employing 95,631 people with an annual payroll of $5.38 bn. These are establishments physically operating in the county, not listings. Source: US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
What is the average wage in Washington County?
Average annual pay is $60,700, or $1,167 a week, across 95,625 covered jobs. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
How much SBA lending happens in Washington County?
514 7(a) approvals totalling $201.1 m since FY2020, across 77 lenders, with a median approval of $150,000, plus 197 504 approvals worth $144.4 m. These are approvals recorded in the release, not loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans in Washington County get paid back?
Of the 124 loans that have reached a final outcome, 113 were paid in full and 11 charged off, a charge off rate of 8.9 percent. Loans still running are excluded, because they have not yet succeeded or failed.
How many building permits were issued in Washington County?
1,397 housing units were authorised by permit in 2024, with a declared construction value of $493.2 m. Multifamily was 9.7 percent of units. Source: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
What is the radon zone for Washington County?
Zone 1, a predicted average indoor radon screening level greater than 4 pCi/L. Source: US EPA, Map of Radon Zones, county spreadsheet, 2024-05 publication, EPA 402/A-16/001.
Where do people moving to Washington County come from?
The largest single origin is Washington County Non-migrants, with 106,920 households. Arriving households report an average income of $87,864 against null for those leaving. Source: US Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income county migration flows, 2021 to 2022 filing years.
Are traffic counts available for Washington County on this page?
No. Annual average daily traffic resolves in the platform rather than in this dataset, so no AADT figure is printed here. It is a gap we know about rather than a figure we estimated.
Is zoning published for Washington County?
Not yet. The zoning layer is in build. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning, and where a statutory framework applies it is marked as the statewide frame with confirm locally attached.
Washington County
Cities and places in Washington.
26 Census places lie wholly or partly in Washington County. 26 carry enough published place level data for a page of their own and are linked. The rest are named here and not linked, because the American Community Survey and the SBA record between them do not carry enough about them to write an honest page. A place existing is itself worth knowing, so nothing in the county is left out.
| Place | Type | Population | SBA approvals | Lies in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodbury | city | 78,305 | 77 | Wholly in this county |
| Cottage Grove | city | 40,992 | 41 | Wholly in this county |
| Oakdale | city | 28,585 | 26 | Wholly in this county |
| Hastings | city | 22,117 | 28 | 2.6 percent here, 97.4 percent Dakota County |
| Forest Lake | city | 20,729 | 47 | Wholly in this county |
| Stillwater | city | 19,355 | 79 | Wholly in this county |
| Hugo | city | 16,340 | 39 | Wholly in this county |
| Lake Elmo | city | 13,140 | 39 | Wholly in this county |
| Mahtomedi | city | 8,133 | 2 | Wholly in this county |
| St. Paul Park | city | 5,457 | 6 | Wholly in this county |
| Oak Park Heights | city | 4,756 | 6 | Wholly in this county |
| Newport | city | 4,754 | 7 | Wholly in this county |
| Grant | city | 3,950 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Scandia | city | 3,950 | 7 | Wholly in this county |
| Bayport | city | 3,905 | 5 | Wholly in this county |
| Afton | city | 2,957 | 2 | Wholly in this county |
| Lakeland | city | 1,492 | 7 | Wholly in this county |
| Dellwood | city | 1,181 | 2 | Wholly in this county |
| Lake St. Croix Beach | city | 1,105 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Birchwood Village | city | 866 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Landfall | city | 776 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Marine on St. Croix | city | 740 | 3 | Wholly in this county |
| Willernie | city | 495 | 3 | Wholly in this county |
| St. Marys Point | city | 483 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Pine Springs | city | 395 | 1 | Wholly in this county |
| Lakeland Shores | city | 344 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
A further 6 SBA approvals in Washington County are recorded against borrower cities that match no Census place, the largest being Lind Lakes, West Lakeland Township, Barron. Those are postal cities and unincorporated areas rather than incorporated places, so no page claims them, and their lending is counted in this county's totals above rather than under any city.