diff --git a/pandas/core/frame.py b/pandas/core/frame.py
index 3d1a39a86c784..7893c0cd24a3e 100644
--- a/pandas/core/frame.py
+++ b/pandas/core/frame.py
@@ -387,8 +387,12 @@ def _constructor_expanddim(self):
     # Constructors
 
     def __init__(self, data=None, index=None, columns=None, dtype=None, copy=False):
+        if data is None and index is not None and columns is not None and dtype is None:
+            data = np.nan
+
         if data is None:
             data = {}
+
         if dtype is not None:
             dtype = self._validate_dtype(dtype)