Cost of vacancy calculator
Work out what one empty unit really costs, per day, per turnover and across your portfolio. Then copy a plain-language summary for the owner.
One vacancy
Turnover costs ($)
Carrying costs per month ($)
Portfolio
Owner summary
How the cost of vacancy is calculated
Vacancy cost is more than the missing rent. It adds the work to turn the unit and the bills that keep coming while nobody pays rent.
Worked example
A $2,200 unit that sits empty for 30 days loses about $2,170 in rent. Add $1,700 of cleaning, paint, marketing and rekeying, plus about $560 of utilities and holding costs, and the vacancy costs roughly $4,430. With 100 units and 40% turnover, that is about 40 vacancies and close to $177,000 a year. Cutting 7 days from each turn saves about $25,500.
Why days vacant is the number to attack
Turnover costs are hard to cut without cutting quality. Days vacant are different: they depend on how fast you list, how fast you answer inquiries and how fast you get a qualified renter to a showing. Renters often contact several listings at once, so a reply that comes the next morning is often a reply to someone who already booked a tour elsewhere.
Ways to cut days vacant
- Pre-market the unit as soon as notice is given.
- Reply to every inquiry within minutes, including evenings and weekends.
- Ask the same pre-screening questions every time, so you only show to qualified renters.
- Offer self-booking for showings and send a confirmation text a few hours before.
- Follow up with renters who go quiet after a showing.
Use the rental inquiry reply generator to write those replies, or the speed-to-lead calculator to size the cost of slow replies.
Questions people ask
What is the cost of vacancy?
It is everything a vacant unit costs: the rent you do not collect, the turnover work (cleaning, paint, repairs, marketing) and the carrying costs that continue while nobody pays rent, such as utilities, taxes, insurance and HOA dues.
How do you calculate vacancy loss?
Multiply the daily rent (monthly rent × 12 ÷ 365) by the number of days the unit is vacant. That is the lost rent. Add turnover and carrying costs to get the full cost of the vacancy.
What is a vacancy rate and how is it different?
Vacancy rate is the share of units (or days) that are empty over a period, for example 5 vacant units out of 100 is a 5% vacancy rate. This calculator focuses on the dollar cost of each vacancy, which is what an owner feels.
Can I share this with an owner?
Yes. Copy the owner summary and paste it into an email or report. It explains the cost in plain language.
Should I include taxes and insurance?
Only if you want the full cost of holding the unit while empty. Those bills are paid whether the unit is rented or not, so some owners leave them out. The rent you lose is the part a vacancy actually adds.
Last updated October 30, 2026. Built by Hasham Akram, founder of Closing Scale. Estimates only, not legal, tax or financial advice.