Days on Market: The Honest Metric Nobody Talks About

Ask a seller what their unit is worth and you will get a number. Ask how long similar units took to actually sell, and you will usually get silence. Yet days on market — the time between listing a property and agreeing a deal — is one of the most honest signals a market produces.

What the metric really measures

Days on market is the meeting point of price and demand. A unit priced where buyers see value moves quickly; a unit priced on hope waits. Long waiting times are rarely about bad luck — they are the market quietly voting on the asking price, the presentation, or both. Real estate is an illiquid asset by nature: even a fairly priced unit needs time for the right buyer to appear, view, negotiate, and arrange money.

Why some units sell faster

• Realistic pricing anchored to recent comparable deals, not to old expectations.
• Complete listings: clear photos, accurate details, stated payment position.
• Responsive sellers who answer quickly and schedule viewings flexibly.
• Ready paperwork that lets a serious buyer move without delays.

How each side should use it

Sellers should set expectations before listing: know the typical rhythm for your compound and unit type, and pre-decide when you will review your price rather than reacting emotionally month by month. A long-sitting listing also grows stale — buyers assume something is wrong — so a meaningful refresh beats silent stubbornness. Buyers can read time as information: a fresh listing leaves less room for negotiation, while one that has waited long may hide a motivated seller — or a genuine defect worth investigating.

The takeaway: price tells you what a seller wants; time on market tells you what buyers think of it. Watch both, and you will read any listing far more accurately.