While a case can be made for many experiences that it is about the journey, not the destination, that doesn’t apply to selling your home.  All sellers just want the best results and being for sale on the market is simply a distasteful necessity.  As such, the quicker it sells, the better.

Our current markets in Toronto and across the GTA are much slower than normal, so at the same time as we have record levels of sellers on the market, we have homes taking longer to sell.  The average days on market (DOM) in the GTA as a whole in May was 29 days, which is six days longer than back in May 2024.

While six days might not sound so bad, it means properties take, on average, 23% longer to sell this year than last year.  Even worse, that six days longer doesn’t take into account when properties fail to sell and are relisted again (and again).

You see, the MLS system that we use to list real estate in Ontario allows real estate agents to terminate a listing that hasn’t sold and re-list it immediately.  Whenever that takes place, the old MLS number is replaced with a new MLS number and the DOM (days on market) starts fresh.

As you can imagine, this means that the DOM stats are very unreliable as it is not unusual at all to see multiple attempts at selling a home on any given street, neighbourhood or building.  It’s these DOM stats that form the basis of the many articles and headlines each month about the latest real estate stats.

The good news is that the Toronto Region Real Estate Board do a monthly report that compares both the average listing days on market as well as the average property days on market.  Property days on market, or PDOM, is what we see when we combine all of the recent listings for a property into one stat.

How off could it be?

If you’re wondering how much of a difference that actually makes in the true length of time it takes to sell real estate, the answer is a lot.

As of May 2025, the official days on market for listings (i.e. how long it takes a property to sell) was 25 days.  The actual PDOM (or how long it takes when we include other recent attempts to sell the property) jumps up to 39 days on average.  That’s two full weeks!

Let’s look at the full chart for the various markets around the GTA and then we’ll share our insights.  We’re going to focus on the left hand side of the chart, which shows the LDOM versus PDOM for May 2025.  The right hand side is the year-to-date, which is less relevant.

Here’s some key takeaways from the above chart.

Milton, you liar.

If you read any articles about Milton’s real estate market, you’re likely getting a very false impression of what’s going on there.  With 162 sales in May, the average days on market was 21 days, at least according to the headlines.  The actual property days on market for Milton though, was 71% higher, or 36 days.

We’re picking on Milton (and East Gwillimbury, which tied it at 71% higher than reported), because of the difference in days as a percentage of the reported listing days on market.  While the difference expressed in number of days is easier to grasp, the slower the market, the bigger the impact.  For example, Milton’s market was understated by 15 days when we look at the listing days on market of 21 days and the property days on market of 36 days.

Richmond Hill was also understated by 15 days, but because they are a slower market (31 days for LDOM versus 46 for PDOM), that is “just” a 48% discrepancy.  The same 15 days in Milton is a 71% difference.

Now, Brock is a town you can trust.

In comparison, the township of Brock in Durham region had a listing days on market of 22 days and a property days on market of the exact same 22 days.  While they only had 18 sales in the month of May 2025, it actually did take 22 days for properties to sell, on average, in Brock.

King City, north of Toronto, is the next most honest place when it comes to DOM stats.  They have LDOM of 48 days on market, so a fairly slow market.  The PDOM is just six days more, at 54 days on average, which is just a 13% higher actual length of time to sell.

Don’t believe Peel Region.

When it comes to the various regions around the GTA, Peel Region has the highest discrepancy between LDOM and PDOM.  The headlines you read about Peel will reference an average days on market of 26 days, but the actual property days on market is 16 days longer at 42 days on average.  That’s 62% higher than the LDOM and a substantial difference.

Durham comes in a close second, with a 61% higher PDOM than the reported LDOM.  Halton is next, with a 52% higher actual DOM than the stories would have us believe, followed by Toronto at an even 50%.  York is at 48%, Simcoe at 45% and Dufferin is the most accurate region, with just a 33% higher than reported days on market.

So, how long does it actually take to sell?

If we look at the PDOM stat as the most accurate reflection of how long it takes real estate to sell in the GTA, the range is from 22 days (in Brock) all the way up to 66 days (in Adjala-Tosorontio).

If we look at the fastest selling markets (PDOM under 30 days), here’s the best places to be a seller right now.

• Brock (22)
• Ajax (25)
• Uxbridge, Whitby (27)
• Clarington (28)
• Durham Region (29)

This cluster suggests that Durham Region is a seller’s market overall.

Turning to the slower markets (PDOM over 50 days), here’s what we see.

• Adjala-Tosorontio (66)
• Essa (56)
• King (54)
• Innisfil (53)

These may reflect areas with larger properties, more rural settings, or higher price points requiring longer marketing periods.

If we look at Toronto, the City of Toronto sits at 39 days, matching the TRREB average, meaning it’s in line with the broader market.  Toronto East (32), West (40), and Central (43) show slight variances but overall balanced market dynamics.

When it comes to York Region, it averages around 40 days, showing some consistency despite its internal variation (e.g., King at 54 vs. Vaughan at 39).  Both Halton Region and Peel Region are close to the average, indicating relative market stability.

If you’re considering buying or selling, work with agents who understand what’s actually going on in the market and in the neighbourhoods you’re interested in!  Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us to start the process.