America faces a housing shortage, yet about 14.5 million homes across the country are vacant. How can both be true?

Using the latest U.S. Census Bureau data compiled by LendingTree, Visual Capitalist’s Dorothy Neufeld created this map showing the share of vacant housing units in every state.

The figures include vacation homes, rentals awaiting tenants, homes for sale, and other unoccupied properties, not just abandoned buildings.

Which States Have the Highest Vacancy Rates?

About one in 10 U.S. housing units is vacant, but most are not permanently sitting unused.

Nearly 4.7 million vacant units are seasonal or recreational homes, 2.6 million are available for rent, and fewer than 800,000 are actively listed for sale. This helps explain why states with large vacation-home markets, including Maine, Vermont, Florida, and Hawaii, record some of the nation’s highest vacancy rates.

Rank
State
Vacancy Rate 2024
Vacant Housing Units
1
Maine
20.6%
154,717
2
Vermont
19.4%
65,626
3
Alaska
17.6%
57,958
4
West Virginia
15.4%
132,670
5
Florida
14.7%
1,503,660
6
Mississippi
14.6%
195,683
7
Alabama
14.5%
340,018
8
Louisiana
14.4%
304,122
9
New Hampshire
14.3%
92,650
10
Arkansas
13.5%
188,686
11
Delaware
13.4%
62,165
12
Hawaii
13.3%
75,443
13
South Carolina
13.3%
325,050
14
Montana
13.2%
69,560
15
New Mexico
12.5%
119,550
16
North Carolina
12.5%
613,323
17
North Dakota
12.3%
46,218
18
Wyoming
12.2%
33,823
19
Oklahoma
12.0%
212,738
20
Michigan
11.8%
545,867
21
Missouri
11.2%
317,060
22
Wisconsin
10.8%
299,092
23
Arizona
10.5%
336,758
24
South Dakota
10.5%
43,040
25
Georgia
10.3%
467,469
26
Idaho
10.3%
82,009
27
Kentucky
10.3%
208,647
28
Tennessee
10.2%
319,393
29
District of Columbia
10.1%
36,523
30
New York
10.0%
862,595
31
Texas
9.4%
1,135,699
32
Minnesota
9.3%
237,075
33
Nevada
9.3%
123,878
34
Kansas
9.2%
119,575
35
Pennsylvania
9.2%
531,599
36
Rhode Island
9.1%
44,362
37
Indiana
8.8%
260,559
38
Virginia
8.7%
319,024
39
Iowa
8.5%
121,992
40
Colorado
8.3%
214,835
41
Massachusetts
8.1%
245,364
42
Ohio
8.1%
429,200
43
Utah
8.1%
98,646
44
Illinois
7.7%
421,003
45
Maryland
7.7%
197,856
46
Nebraska
7.6%
65,597
47
California
7.5%
1,096,644
48
New Jersey
7.5%
283,653
49
Oregon
7.5%
139,570
50
Washington
7.3%
241,800
51
Connecticut
7.0%
107,815
—
🇺🇸 U.S. total
10.1%
14,547,859

Maine leads the country with a vacancy rate of 20.6%, followed by Vermont at 19.4% and Alaska at 17.6%. At the other end of the ranking, Washington and Connecticut have rates of around 7%, while California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts also sit near the bottom.

In these states, available housing is often absorbed quickly, leaving fewer homes unoccupied. A low vacancy rate can therefore reflect strong demand, not necessarily a healthier or more affordable housing market.

Why Empty Homes Won’t Solve the Housing Crisis

At first glance, millions of vacant homes may appear sufficient to ease America’s housing shortage. In practice, many are not available to year-round buyers or renters.

Some are second homes or seasonal properties concentrated in vacation destinations, while others are temporarily vacant between tenants or owners. High vacancy rates and housing shortages can therefore exist at the same time, particularly in expensive metropolitan areas where year-round housing remains scarce.

To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic on the salary needed to afford rent across America.