Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US)
Alpine County had the highest housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US) of 58 counties in 2021, at 73.3%. Contra Costa County had the lowest, at 3.8%. The median was 10.3% and the figure for California was 7.8%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.
Map of counties, 2021
- Under 5.8
- 5.8 to 6.8
- 6.8 to 10
- 10 to 14
- 14 to 23
- 23 and over
All counties, 2021
Full ranking
Other periods
About this ranking
Vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units.
More on how it is measured
- Vacant units include those for rent or for sale, rented or sold but not yet occupied, for seasonal, recreational or occasional use, for migrant workers, and other vacant units.
- United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.
This gross rate counts seasonal and other off-market vacant units, so it is much higher than the rental and homeowner vacancy rates of the Housing Vacancy Survey (rental_vacancy_rate and homeowner_vacancy_rate) and cannot be compared with them. Counties with many holiday homes have high rates.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Census Bureau. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs (Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat
MLA 9
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs. Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021.
Harvard
U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_california_by_2021,
author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Census Bureau
TI - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US), 2021
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/01/29
PB - U.S. Census Bureau
DB - Invokely
UR - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-vacancy-rate-all-vacant-units/california-counties?period=2021.
N1 - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25002.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Counties in California by housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US) using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"vacancy_rate_acs","level":"province","within":"California","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=vacancy_rate_acs&level=province&within=California&limit=10Questions
Which county has the highest housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US)?
Alpine County, with 73.3% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Which county has the lowest housing vacancy rate, all vacant units (US)?
Contra Costa County, with 3.8% in 2021.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25002: vacant housing units as a percentage of all housing units, calculated with stored inputs. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
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