diff --git a/kernel/sched/isolation.c b/kernel/sched/isolation.c
index a735d9e229dde..23085e665faac 100644
--- a/kernel/sched/isolation.c
+++ b/kernel/sched/isolation.c
@@ -91,8 +91,7 @@ void __init housekeeping_init(void)
 
 static int __init housekeeping_setup(char *str, enum hk_flags flags)
 {
-	cpumask_var_t non_housekeeping_mask;
-	cpumask_var_t tmp;
+	cpumask_var_t non_housekeeping_mask, housekeeping_staging;
 
 	alloc_bootmem_cpumask_var(&non_housekeeping_mask);
 	if (cpulist_parse(str, non_housekeeping_mask) < 0) {
@@ -101,32 +100,32 @@ static int __init housekeeping_setup(char *str, enum hk_flags flags)
 		return 0;
 	}
 
-	alloc_bootmem_cpumask_var(&tmp);
-	if (!housekeeping_flags) {
-		alloc_bootmem_cpumask_var(&housekeeping_mask);
-		cpumask_andnot(housekeeping_mask,
-			       cpu_possible_mask, non_housekeeping_mask);
+	alloc_bootmem_cpumask_var(&housekeeping_staging);
+	cpumask_andnot(housekeeping_staging,
+		       cpu_possible_mask, non_housekeeping_mask);
 
-		cpumask_andnot(tmp, cpu_present_mask, non_housekeeping_mask);
-		if (cpumask_empty(tmp)) {
+	if (!cpumask_intersects(cpu_present_mask, housekeeping_staging)) {
+		__cpumask_set_cpu(smp_processor_id(), housekeeping_staging);
+		__cpumask_clear_cpu(smp_processor_id(), non_housekeeping_mask);
+		if (!housekeeping_flags) {
 			pr_warn("Housekeeping: must include one present CPU, "
 				"using boot CPU:%d\n", smp_processor_id());
-			__cpumask_set_cpu(smp_processor_id(), housekeeping_mask);
-			__cpumask_clear_cpu(smp_processor_id(), non_housekeeping_mask);
 		}
+	}
+
+	if (!housekeeping_flags) {
+		alloc_bootmem_cpumask_var(&housekeeping_mask);
+		cpumask_copy(housekeeping_mask, housekeeping_staging);
 	} else {
-		cpumask_andnot(tmp, cpu_present_mask, non_housekeeping_mask);
-		if (cpumask_empty(tmp))
-			__cpumask_clear_cpu(smp_processor_id(), non_housekeeping_mask);
-		cpumask_andnot(tmp, cpu_possible_mask, non_housekeeping_mask);
-		if (!cpumask_equal(tmp, housekeeping_mask)) {
+		if (!cpumask_equal(housekeeping_staging, housekeeping_mask)) {
 			pr_warn("Housekeeping: nohz_full= must match isolcpus=\n");
-			free_bootmem_cpumask_var(tmp);
+			free_bootmem_cpumask_var(housekeeping_staging);
 			free_bootmem_cpumask_var(non_housekeeping_mask);
 			return 0;
 		}
 	}
-	free_bootmem_cpumask_var(tmp);
+
+	free_bootmem_cpumask_var(housekeeping_staging);
 
 	if ((flags & HK_FLAG_TICK) && !(housekeeping_flags & HK_FLAG_TICK)) {
 		if (IS_ENABLED(CONFIG_NO_HZ_FULL)) {