{
  "slug": "vacancy-loss-calculator",
  "title": "Rental Vacancy Loss Calculator",
  "heading": "Vacancy Loss Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/vacancy-loss-calculator",
  "summary": "Convert vacancy rate or vacant days into dollars lost across your portfolio.",
  "description": "Vacancy loss is the gap between potential gross rent (every unit rented 100% of the time at market rent) and what you actually collect. This is different from turnover cost, which includes make-ready and marketing — vacancy loss is purely the rent that never got collected. Lenders and appraisers use a vacancy assumption (commonly 5-8% for stabilized multifamily, higher for single-family or student housing) to underwrite NOI, and if your actual vacancy runs above that assumption, your property is underperforming its appraisal even if every other expense line is on budget.",
  "formula": "Vacancy loss = potential gross rent × vacancy rate. Annualized loss = units × avg rent × 12 × vacancy%.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=vacancy-loss-calculator",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "units",
      "label": "Number of units",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 8,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "avgRent",
      "label": "Average monthly rent per unit",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 1400,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "vacancyPct",
      "label": "Vacancy rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 7,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 100
    },
    {
      "id": "targetVacancyPct",
      "label": "Market / target vacancy rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 5,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 100
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "vacancyLoss",
      "label": "Annual vacancy loss",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "pgr",
      "label": "Potential gross rent (100% occupied)",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "collectedRent",
      "label": "Expected collected rent",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "excessLoss",
      "label": "Loss above market vacancy assumption",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Number of units: 8",
      "Average monthly rent per unit: 1400 $",
      "Vacancy rate: 7 %",
      "Market / target vacancy rate: 5 %"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Annual vacancy loss: $9,408",
      "Potential gross rent (100% occupied): $134,400",
      "Expected collected rent: $124,992",
      "Loss above market vacancy assumption: $2,688"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter number of units.",
      "Enter average monthly rent per unit ($).",
      "Enter vacancy rate (%).",
      "Enter market / target vacancy rate (%).",
      "Read your annual vacancy loss on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "units": 5,
        "avgRent": 850,
        "vacancyPct": 4.2,
        "targetVacancyPct": 3
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "units": 8,
        "avgRent": 1400,
        "vacancyPct": 7,
        "targetVacancyPct": 5
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "units": 13,
        "avgRent": 2250,
        "vacancyPct": 11.200000000000001,
        "targetVacancyPct": 8
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "What vacancy rate should I underwrite?",
      "a": "5-8% is standard for stable multifamily in most metros; C-class or transitional areas often run 8-12%. Single-family rentals with longer tenancies can budget as low as 4-5%, but always look at your submarket's actual data rather than a national average."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is vacancy loss the same as credit loss?",
      "a": "No. Vacancy loss is rent lost from empty units. Credit loss is rent lost from occupied units where the tenant doesn't pay — skips, evictions, and write-offs. A full pro forma income statement should show both lines separately."
    },
    {
      "q": "How does this affect property value?",
      "a": "NOI drives value under the income approach, and vacancy loss directly reduces NOI. At a 6% cap rate, an extra $10,000 in annual vacancy loss versus market assumptions represents roughly $167,000 of lost value — which is why buyers scrutinize a seller's trailing vacancy closely."
    },
    {
      "q": "How do I cut structural vacancy?",
      "a": "List units before the outgoing tenant leaves, keep make-ready turnaround under a week, and price at market rather than chasing last year's rent. Persistent above-market vacancy is almost always a pricing or condition problem, not a demand problem."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/tenant-turnover-cost",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/rent-roll-grm"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Rental Vacancy Loss Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/vacancy-loss-calculator)"
}