The Short Answer
About six months. The median Miami-Dade condominium sale above $5 million spent 178 cumulative days on market before it went under contract.
That median hides the range that actually matters to a seller. 29% of these residences found a buyer in under 90 days. 22% took more than a year, and 5% took more than two years.
The submarket changes the answer more than the price does. Above $5 million, Surfside holds about 7 months of delivered inventory and Miami Beach about 13. Brickell holds 81.
The Distribution: Half the Market Is Not Near the Median
| Days on market before contract | Closings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under 90 days | 149 | 29% |
| 90 to 180 days | 109 | 21% |
| 181 to 365 days | 139 | 27% |
| 1 to 2 years | 88 | 17% |
| More than 2 years | 27 | 5% |
The middle 50% of closings ran from 69 days to 336 days. The average was 278 days, well above the median of 178, which tells you the long tail is heavy. A handful of residences sat for years and pulled the average up.
This is why “the market is slow” and “the market is fast” are both true statements in Miami. Nearly a third of sellers were done in a quarter. Another fifth were still on market after a year.
Price Band: The Top of the Market Is the Slow Part
| Price band | Closings | Median days on market | Median sold to list | Active listings | Months of inventory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5M to $7M | 222 | 176 | 93.5% | 156 | 22.8 |
| $7M to $10M | 144 | 181 | 94.0% | 105 | 23.7 |
| $10M to $15M | 87 | 148 | 92.9% | 59 | 22.0 |
| Above $15M | 59 | 200 | 89.4% | 67 | 36.9 |
Read the last row twice. Above $15 million, residences took the longest to sell, closed at the lowest share of asking price, and carry the deepest inventory in the market. A seller at that level is not in the same market as a seller at $6 million, and should not expect the same timeline.
The $10 million to $15 million band is the quiet surprise. It moved fastest, at a median of 148 days. That band is where a serious buyer pool and a limited supply of large, well-positioned residences meet.
The Absorption Map: Months of Inventory by Submarket
Months of inventory is the honest measure of how long a market takes to clear. It divides current active listings by the monthly pace of closings. Six months is usually called balanced. Nothing above $5 million in Miami is anywhere near balanced.
| Submarket | Closings above $5M | Median days on market | Median sold to list | Share that took over a year | Delivered active listings | Months of inventory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surfside | 40 | 169 | 93.5% | 20% | 9 | 7.3 |
| Miami Beach | 152 | 145 | 92.9% | 21% | 61 | 13.0 |
| Key Biscayne | 35 | 163 | 95.1% | 20% | 20 | 18.6 |
| Bal Harbour | 28 | 212 | 92.8% | 21% | 17 | 19.7 |
| Fisher Island | 44 | 146 | 90.8% | 7% | 27 | 19.9 |
| Coconut Grove | 38 | 117 | 93.5% | 11% | 26 | 22.2 |
| Sunny Isles Beach | 95 | 259 | 93.8% | 31% | 76 | 26.0 |
| Downtown Miami | 21 | 257 | 92.9% | 24% | 20 | 31.0 |
| Brickell | 14 | 171 | 92.8% | 29% | 35 | 81.2 |
Three readings matter here.
Surfside and Miami Beach are the liquid markets. Surfside clears in about 7 months, which is close to balanced, on only 9 delivered listings above $5 million. Miami Beach produced 152 closings, the deepest buyer pool in the county at this level, and holds 13 months of supply.
Coconut Grove is the fastest to contract. A median of 117 days, and only 11% of sales took more than a year. Its inventory number is higher because the Grove’s new buildings are still delivering, but individual residences there are not sitting.
Brickell above $5 million barely trades. 14 closings in 32.5 months against 35 delivered listings. Brickell is a genuinely deep luxury market below $5 million, which is where its buyers are. Above $5 million the buyer pool thins out and the asking prices are concentrated in pre-construction towers that have not delivered. A seller who prices a Brickell residence against Miami Beach comparables is competing in a market that has not proven it exists at that level.
What that same $5 million actually buys varies more than how long it takes to sell. In What $5 Million Buys in Each Miami Submarket I measured 138 closings between $3.5 and $7 million and found the budget buys about 4,378 square feet in Aventura and 2,353 in Bal Harbour. The same analysis identifies submarkets where $5 million falls in a hole in the inventory and almost nothing trades.
Building Level: Same Market, Very Different Clocks
These are the 20 buildings with at least eight closings above $5 million, sorted from fastest to slowest.
| Building | Closings | Median days on market | Median sold to list | Active listings | Months of inventory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mr. C Residences Coconut Grove | 9 | 60 | 92.4% | 1 | 3.6 |
| Oceana Bal Harbour (10201 Collins) | 8 | 80 | 94.0% | 5 | 20.3 |
| Two Park Grove | 9 | 82 | 92.6% | 1 | 3.6 |
| Continuum South Beach, South Tower | 25 | 87 | 92.1% | 12 | 15.6 |
| Continuum South Beach, North Tower | 10 | 91 | 94.4% | 2 | 6.5 |
| The Surf Club, South Tower | 14 | 112 | 95.3% | 1 | 2.3 |
| The Surf Club, North Tower | 14 | 128 | 90.8% | 1 | 2.3 |
| Murano at Portofino | 9 | 135 | 87.6% | 2 | 7.2 |
| Ritz-Carlton Residences Miami Beach | 9 | 158 | 94.2% | 4 | 14.4 |
| Mansions at Acqualina | 14 | 170 | 96.5% | 4 | 9.3 |
| Estates at Acqualina, North Tower | 15 | 182 | 93.8% | 7 | 15.2 |
| Five Park Miami Beach | 17 | 187 | 92.7% | 6 | 11.5 |
| The Residences at the Bath Club | 8 | 194 | 91.4% | 2 | 8.1 |
| Turnberry Ocean Club | 18 | 210 | 94.2% | 10 | 18.1 |
| Apogee South Beach | 9 | 216 | 94.7% | 1 | 3.6 |
| Aston Martin Residences | 8 | 219 | 91.0% | 12 | 48.8 |
| Estates at Acqualina, South Tower | 18 | 220 | 91.5% | 12 | 21.7 |
| Oceana Bal Harbour (10203 Collins) | 13 | 251 | 93.4% | 4 | 10.0 |
| Ritz-Carlton Residences Sunny Isles | 9 | 262 | 94.7% | 4 | 14.4 |
| One Thousand Museum | 14 | 271 | 94.2% | 9 | 20.9 |
The Surf Club is the clearest case of scarcity doing the work. Both towers hold one active listing each against 14 closings, which is 2.3 months of inventory in a market averaging over 20. A seller there is not competing with a neighbor. A buyer there waits for supply.
Aston Martin Residences is the opposite. 12 active listings above $5 million against 8 closings, which is nearly 49 months of supply. That is a first-resale market in a building that delivered in 2024, where early buyers are exiting at the same time.
Two buildings show why the two columns have to be read together. Apogee took a median of 216 days to sell but holds one listing and closed at 94.7% of asking. Slow to contract, but the seller kept the price. Murano at Portofino sold faster, in 135 days, at 87.6% of asking. Faster, but the discount was steeper.
What Waiting Costs
The relationship between time and price is real, and it is smaller than most sellers fear.
| Days on market before contract | Closings | Median sold to list | Share closing 10% or more below list |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 90 | 149 | 94.0% | 23% |
| 91 to 180 | 109 | 93.4% | 26% |
| 181 to 365 | 137 | 93.2% | 34% |
| 366 to 730 | 88 | 91.8% | 36% |
| More than 730 | 24 | 93.5% | 38% |
From the first 90 days to the second year, the median seller gave up about two more points of asking price, and the chance of a double-digit discount rose from 23% to 36%.
Be careful with the direction of that relationship. Time on market does not cause the discount. An overpriced listing produces both. The residences that sold in 90 days were, in most cases, the ones priced correctly on day one, and the price cut later is the correction, not the consequence.
The last row also deserves a caution. The 24 residences that took more than two years closed at a median of 93.5%, which looks better than the year-to-two-year group. At that sample size, and with price changes and relistings in those histories, do not read a recovery into it.
What This Means for Sellers
Plan for six months, and price for the first ninety days. The median is 178 days. The residences that closed within 90 days held 94.0% of asking. That is the whole pricing argument in two numbers.
Above $15 million, plan for a year. That band ran 200 days to contract at 89.4% of asking, with 36.9 months of inventory. If a seller at that level needs a fast result, the price has to do the work that time usually does.
Check your building before you check the market. Two Bal Harbour towers in the same complex reported 80 and 251 median days. A market average would have told you nothing about either one.
Count your competition in the building first. Inventory per closing, not neighborhood sentiment, is what decides how many buyers see your residence as one of several. I measured the same effect in newly delivered buildings in New vs. Older Miami Luxury Condos.
What This Means for Buyers
Long exposure is leverage, but verify the history. 22% of closings took more than a year. Ask for the full listing history, including withdrawals, relistings and price changes, before you treat a long number as weakness.
In a 2 to 3 month market, move differently. At The Surf Club, Mr. C and Two Park Grove, inventory runs under 4 months. There is no negotiating leverage from time in those buildings, because the next buyer is close behind.
Use the submarket numbers to set expectations. Brickell above $5 million holds 81 months of supply, Downtown 31 and Sunny Isles 26. A buyer in those markets has time. A buyer in Surfside does not.
Do not assume slow means cheap. Sunny Isles took a median of 259 days to contract yet closed at 93.8% of asking, better than Miami Beach at 145 days and 92.9%. Patience from a seller is not the same as weakness.
For current inventory by neighborhood, see Miami Penthouses & Estates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to sell a luxury condo in Miami?
The median Miami-Dade condominium sale above $5 million took 178 cumulative days on market before going under contract, based on 512 closings from January 2024 to September 2026. 29% sold in under 90 days and 22% took more than a year.
Which Miami submarket sells fastest above $5 million?
Coconut Grove had the shortest median time to contract at 117 days, with only 11% of sales taking more than a year. By inventory, Surfside is the tightest market at about 7 months of delivered supply, followed by Miami Beach at 13 months.
How many months of inventory does Miami’s luxury condo market have?
About 21 months above $5 million, counting delivered buildings only. Six months is normally considered balanced, so the market above $5 million favors buyers on supply, with wide variation by submarket and by building.
Do more expensive Miami condos take longer to sell?
Above $15 million, yes. That band took a median of 200 days and closed at 89.4% of list price, with 36.9 months of inventory. The $10 million to $15 million band was the fastest at 148 days.
How much does a long time on market cost a seller?
Sales that closed within 90 days held a median of 94.0% of asking. Sales that took one to two years closed at 91.8%, and the share of sales closing 10% or more below list rose from 23% to 36%. The discount usually reflects the original price being too high, not the passage of time.
Which Miami buildings have the least resale competition?
Among buildings with at least eight closings above $5 million, The Surf Club towers held one active listing each, about 2.3 months of supply. Mr. C Residences, Two Park Grove and Apogee each held one active listing, about 3.6 months. Aston Martin Residences held the most at 12 listings, nearly 49 months.
Buying or Selling a Miami Luxury Condominium?
How long a residence takes to sell is not a market statistic. It depends on the building’s current inventory, the line and floor, the view corridor, the condition of the interior, the price the last comparable closed at, and how many buyers at that price are actually looking in that submarket this quarter.
If you’re evaluating a residence at The Surf Club, Continuum, Oceana Bal Harbour, Estates at Acqualina, Five Park, One Thousand Museum or any Miami luxury tower, contact Ashton Coleman for a property-specific comparison using recent closed sales and current competing inventory.
Explore current listings on Miami Penthouses & Estates.
📞 305.978.7704
📧 AColeman@onesothebysrealty.com
About the Market Data
This analysis uses a Southeast Florida MLS (SEFMLS) export of Miami-Dade condominium closings above $5 million from January 1, 2024 to September 17, 2026, plus active listings as of September 2026. After removing one duplicate transaction it contains 563 closings and 387 active listings. 512 closings report cumulative days on market, and those are the ones used in every timing figure.
Days on market is the MLS cumulative days on market field, measured to contract rather than to closing. It can reset when a listing is withdrawn and relisted, so the real exposure of some residences is longer than the number shown.
Months of inventory divides active listings by the average monthly closings over the 32.5 months of sales data. The active count is a single snapshot from September 2026, so the ratio compares a moment to a multi-year average. In the submarket and building tables the active count excludes pre-construction listings in buildings recorded as 2027 or later, because those cannot close yet. Including them, the market-wide figure rises from about 21 months to about 25.
Submarkets were assigned by street address and subdivision name, and buildings were matched by street address, so towers with separate addresses are treated separately. Sold-to-list uses the list price on the closed record, which may be a reduced price rather than the original asking price, so the real discount from the first asking price is larger than these figures show. MLS information is believed accurate but is not guaranteed.
Disclaimer
Information is provided for informational purposes only and is subject to change without notice. Real estate statistics, listings and sales information should be independently verified. Nothing contained herein constitutes legal, tax, financial or investment advice. Buyers and sellers should consult appropriate professional advisors before making real estate decisions.
