Loss to lease compares market rent with in-place contract rent. If a unit’s supported market rent is $2,000 and its contract rent is $1,850 for the month, the nominal loss to lease is $150. Portfolio reports sum or annualize that difference under a stated method.
The metric is not the same as vacancy, concessions, bad debt, or collection loss. It also is not cash that can automatically be captured: rent regulation, lease terms, renewal timing, unit condition, resident retention, and market evidence constrain the decision.
A defensible report preserves the market-rent source and date, current lease version, effective contract rent, concessions treatment, occupied period, and aggregation method. Otherwise a changed asking-rent assumption can rewrite history.
Formula and example
For a defined period: supported market rent minus contract rent. State whether the report uses monthly scheduled rent, effective rent after concessions, or another measure, and do not mix methods across units.
How to use it
Use loss to lease to identify leases for review and to explain portfolio revenue positioning. Pair it with renewal probability, turnover cost, days vacant, collections, and make-ready needs before recommending a rent action.
Related tools & guides
Editorial ownership
Written and maintained by the Aptoria editorial teamContent updated September 21, 2026. Editorial method reviewed July 28, 2026. Aptoria reviews scope, source fit, examples, limitations, links, and publication gates. This record does not claim attorney, CPA, lender, appraiser, or other independent professional sign-off.
Related terms
Rent
Market rent
The rent a unit would command today if offered to a new tenant in the current local market.
Investing metrics
Gross potential rent (GPR)
The maximum rental income a property could produce with every unit occupied at market rent for the full period.
Leasing
Lease renewal
An agreement or legally recognized continuation that extends a tenancy beyond its current term, sometimes with changed terms.
Financing
Comparables (comps)
Recently sold or rented properties similar to yours, used to estimate what a property is worth or what rent it can command.
Investing metrics
Effective gross income (EGI)
Effective gross income is the property income expected after vacancy and collection loss, plus eligible other property income, before operating expenses.
Rent
Rent roll
A summary of every unit's rent, tenant, lease dates, and payment status across a property or portfolio.
From definition to done
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