Months of Inventory Explained: How to Read Your Local Market (2026)
Months of inventory is active listings divided by monthly sales. Under 4 months is a seller's market, 4 to 6 balanced, over 6 a buyer's market. How to read it.
Months of inventory (MOI) is the number of homes for sale divided by the number sold in the last month, or how long the current supply would take to sell at the current pace. Below 4 months favours sellers; 4 to 6 is balanced; above 6 favours buyers. It is published or computable from every real estate board's monthly report. It is the single most useful number for deciding whether to offer with conditions, how far below asking to start, and whether to sell before you buy.
CostToClose does not republish board statistics; the guided buying flow is where the offer you decide on becomes a number.
How to compute it
MOI = active listings at month end ÷ sales in the month.
A board reporting 3,200 active listings and 800 sales has 4.0 months of inventory. The related sales-to-new-listings ratio (SNLR), sales ÷ new listings, reads the same way inverted: above 60% favours sellers, below 40% buyers.
What each range means for your offer
| MOI | Market | Buyer's approach | Seller's approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 2 | Strong seller's | Expect multiple offers; pre-approval and pre-inspection before offering; conditions weaken the bid | Price at or slightly below market to draw offers; short irrevocable |
| 2–4 | Seller's | Conditions usually possible; offer near asking | Price at market; expect one to three offers |
| 4–6 | Balanced | Full conditions; offer 2%–5% below asking is reasonable | Price accurately; negotiate |
| 6–9 | Buyer's | Offer 5%–10% below; long conditions; ask for seller concessions | Price below the last comparable; consider selling before buying |
| Over 9 | Strong buyer's | Take your time; walk from anything overpriced | Expect months on market; price to the buyer's number |
The ranges are conventions used by Canadian boards and CMHC; they shift by property type (condos and detached in the same city can sit in different ranges).
Where to find it
Every board publishes a monthly report, usually in the first week of the following month: the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, Greater Vancouver Realtors, the Calgary Real Estate Board, the Realtors Association of Edmonton, the Ottawa Real Estate Board, the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors, and so on. Look for "active listings," "sales," and often MOI or SNLR reported directly, by area and by property type. CMHC's Housing Market Information Portal aggregates some of it.
Worked example
A board report shows, for detached homes in one district: 410 active listings, 62 sales, 145 new listings in the month.
| Metric | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Months of inventory | 410 ÷ 62 | 6.6 — buyer's market |
| Sales-to-new-listings ratio | 62 ÷ 145 | 43% — edging toward buyer's |
| Same board, condos: 1,900 active, 210 sales | 1,900 ÷ 210 | 9.0 — strong buyer's |
A buyer of a detached home here can keep conditions and start below asking; a condo buyer can go further. A seller of a condo in this district should price to the market, not to last year. Run your offer through the calculator.
What the number cannot tell you
MOI is a market-wide average. A well-priced house in a good location sells in a buyer's market; an overpriced one sits in a seller's market. Use MOI to set the range of your strategy, then look at the days-on-market and price history of the specific listing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good months of inventory number?
It depends which side you are on. Under 4 favours sellers, 4 to 6 is balanced, over 6 favours buyers.
Where can I find months of inventory for my city?
In your local real estate board's monthly statistics report, usually published in the first week of each month, often broken down by area and property type.
What is the difference between months of inventory and sales-to-new-listings ratio?
MOI measures how long current supply would take to sell; SNLR compares sales to new supply arriving. They usually point the same way.
Is 6 months of inventory a buyer's market?
Six months is the conventional upper bound of balanced; above it is generally called a buyer's market.
Does CostToClose publish market statistics?
No. Board data is licensed; this page explains how to read it. Use the calculators with the price you find.
Sources
- CMHC, Housing Market Information Portal — market indicators methodology — checked 14 Sept 2026
- Canadian real estate boards' published monthly statistics reports (methodology sections) — checked 14 Sept 2026
General information only, checked against the sources listed on the date shown, not legal, tax, or mortgage advice. Rules change; confirm with your lender or the government office concerned.