How to Read the Market Like a Palm Springs Seller

When people ask me, “How’s the real estate market?” the honest answer is never as simple as “prices are up” or “prices are down.” To really understand what’s happening, you have to look at the numbers underneath that question, and as a seller, those numbers tell you exactly how much leverage you have.

Let me walk you through the ones that matter most.

Days on market (DOM) shows who has the leverage. This is how long it takes a property to go under contract once it’s listed, usually shown as an average across a neighborhood, city, or region. When the DOM is low, buyers are competing for limited homes, and that favors you as the seller. When it climbs, buyers gain negotiating power. It’s one of the first numbers I’d want you watching, because it tells you how much patience the market will ask of you.

Days in MLS (DIM) is the number that keeps you honest. DIM measures how long a home takes to sell once it’s actually entered into the MLS. Because a property is often listed a little before it hits the MLS (finishing photos, last-minute prep), DIM usually runs lower than DOM. Knowing the difference keeps you from misreading how fast homes are really moving.

Months of supply is the clearest read on the market. This measures how long it would take to sell everything currently for sale if no new homes came on the market. Low supply means sellers have leverage, because buyers have fewer choices. High supply means buyers have room to negotiate because sellers are competing for attention.

A balanced market is generally five to six months of supply, though that shifts by city, price range, and property type. For a seller, this is the number that most directly tells you whether conditions are in your favor.

The supporting numbers fill in the trend. Active listings, new listings, pending sales, and price reductions together show whether the market is speeding up or slowing down. Two more tell you a lot at a glance: the median sale price, which marks the market’s midpoint, and the sale-to-list price ratio, which shows how close sellers are getting to their asking prices. That last one is especially useful when you’re setting expectations; it’s a direct read on whether homes are commanding their asking price or settling below it.

The bottom line: no single number tells the whole story. Every neighborhood and price range moves differently, which is why a headline stat about “the market” rarely answers the question you actually care about: what’s happening with your home, in your area, at your price point. The sellers who come out ahead are the ones who price and prepare with the real data behind them, and that work starts well before the sign goes in the yard.

If you’re thinking about selling, reach out with your property address or the area you’re interested in, and I’d be glad to prepare a personalized market snapshot showing the numbers that matter most for your situation. Call or text me at (760) 774-3066, email me at will@willcookrealestate.com, or visit palmspringsrealty.com. Let’s look at the real data together and build a plan around it.