---
title: "Vacancy rate — What It Means | Ondo RE"
canonical: https://www.ondorealestate.com/glossary/vacancy-rate/
---

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Investing[All terms starting with V](/glossary/#letter-V)

# Vacancy rate

The share of time or units sitting empty, budgeted as a reduction to expected rental income.

Vacancy covers turnover between tenants and time on market. Projections that assume full occupancy every month overstate income, because turnover is a normal cost of owning rentals.

Days vacant are usually more expensive than a modest rent concession to retain a good tenant, because an empty unit earns nothing while every fixed cost continues.

## Related terms

- [Cash flowWhat remains each month after rent has covered operating expenses and debt service.](/glossary/cash-flow/)
- [NOI (Net Operating Income)Income after operating expenses but before debt service, taxes on income, and capital expenditures.](/glossary/noi/)
- [TurnoverThe work and vacancy between one tenancy and the next: cleaning, repairs, marketing, and re-leasing.](/glossary/turnover/)
- [Operating expensesThe recurring costs of running a property: taxes, insurance, management, maintenance, and owner-paid utilities.](/glossary/operating-expenses/)

## Go deeper

- [Vacancy risk playbook](/blog/vacancy-risk-playbook/)

## More in Investing

- [1% rule](/glossary/one-percent-rule/)
- [1031 exchange](/glossary/1031-exchange/)
- [50% rule](/glossary/fifty-percent-rule/)
- [Appreciation](/glossary/appreciation/)
- [CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)](/glossary/cagr/)
- [Cap rate (Capitalization rate)](/glossary/cap-rate/)

## Have a question about your own situation?

Ondo handles brokerage, lending, property management and notary under one roof, so the answer does not change depending on who you ask.

[Talk to Ondo](/contact/)[Browse all terms](/glossary/)