quasi-rent

economics

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July 16, 2026

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In economics, quasi-rent refers to revenue that exceeds the cost of providing a service, excluding income derived from land ownership. This concept is an extension of the idea of economic rent, which is the income received from owning land or other natural resources that are in fixed supply.12

Classical economists viewed rent as the income of landlords, arising from the differing fertility of land. Modern economics defines rent more broadly as the return to any factor of production above its supply price – the minimum amount needed to secure its services. A quasi-rent, therefore, is a temporary surplus earned by a factor of production until its supply can increase to meet demand, or it can be earned from factors with unique, non-reproducible qualities.2

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rent
The classical economic view
…a period also earn a quasi-rent, until supply has caught up with demand. Where its supply is artificially restricted by a monopoly, the quasi-rent may in fact continue indefinitely. All monopoly profits, it has been argued, should therefore be classified as quasi-rent. Once this point has been reached in the…
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…a period also earn a quasi-rent, until supply has caught up with demand. Where its supply is artificially restricted by a monopoly, the quasi-rent may in fact continue indefinitely. All monopoly profits, it has been argued, should therefore be classified as quasi-rent. Once this point has been reached in the…
Read More