• by Kelvin Miles
• 0
• Posted on September 14, 2026

How Long Will It Take to Sell? Understanding Days-on-Market Trends

One of the most useful numbers a seller can know before listing isn’t the median sale price in their area — it’s the median days on market. It shapes almost every other decision: how to price, how patient to be, and how to negotiate. Here’s what’s happening with this metric right now, and how to use it.

What’s Happening Nationally

Homes are staying on the market longer than they have in recent years. In several markets, the typical home now takes over two months to go under contract — the longest stretch in roughly six years, and noticeably longer than the same period a year earlier. Rising inventory is a major driver: as more sellers who’d been holding onto low mortgage rates finally decide to list, buyers have more options and less urgency to act on any single one.

This is a shift from the pandemic-era market, where homes often went under contract within days. It doesn’t mean homes aren’t selling — pending sales are still happening — but the pace has slowed and buyers are taking more time to decide.

Why This Number Matters More Than You Think

It sets buyer psychology. Buyers in a slower market know they don’t need to rush, which changes how they negotiate. A seller who lists as if it’s still a fast market — high price, no room to negotiate — often ends up with a stale listing and a worse outcome than pricing realistically from the start.

It signals when a price cut is coming. If your local median is 55 days and your listing is approaching that mark with little activity, that’s a data-driven cue to reassess — before a buyer’s agent points it out to you.

It varies enormously by local market. National averages can mask big regional differences — some markets remain tight and competitive while others have swung firmly in buyers’ favor. Always compare your listing against local, not national, numbers.

How to Use Days-on-Market When Pricing

1. Ask your agent for the current local median for homes similar to yours — not the national figure, not last year’s number.
2. If your target buyer pool is patient, price closer to market value from day one rather than testing a higher number and cutting later.
3. If speed matters to you — you’re relocating, carrying two mortgages, or want to avoid the stigma of a stale listing — consider pricing slightly under the top of the range to generate faster interest and competing offers.

Signs Your Listing Is at Risk of Going Stale

• Low or no showing requests in the first two weeks
• Showings happening but no offers following
• Significant online views but little in-person interest
• Approaching or exceeding the local median days-on-market with no activity

Any of these is a signal to revisit price, photos, or presentation — waiting it out rarely fixes a listing that isn’t generating interest.

The Bottom Line

Days-on-market isn’t just a statistic to glance at — it’s a real-time read on how much leverage buyers currently have in your specific market. Sellers who price and plan around it tend to sell faster and closer to their target number than those who price for the market they wish they were in.