Definition
Days on market counts how long a property has been listed before going under contract. As a single number it describes one listing; across a set of listings it is one of the few readings of how fast a market is actually clearing, and how much patience a seller needs.
How to read it
How to read it
- Ask for cumulative days, not the current listing's count. The property has been for sale longer than the newest entry says.
- It measures time to contract, not time to close. In commercial deals the second period is often the longer one.
- Long days on market are a price signal, not a property defect. Almost everything sells at some number.
- On small multifamily the sample is thin. Read it beside transaction volume before concluding anything about the market.
Related terms
Related terms
All termsMarkets
Bid-Ask Spread
The bid-ask spread is the distance between what sellers are asking and what buyers are willing to pay.
MarketsTransaction Volume
Transaction volume is how much actually traded in a market over a period, counted in deals, in units, or in dollars.
MarketsComparable Sale
A comparable sale is a closed transaction used as evidence of what a subject property is worth.
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