How long is a piece of string? lol Honestly it varies for many different reasons. Saturation of providers in your area, birth rates, the going rate, centres and daycare providers opening and closing. The last 1-2 years seems to have been a particularly slow time for a lot of us in the GTA, but it's not exclusive. I remember at one point there was nearly always a thread in the top ten about the frustrations of not being able to fill spots. It was hard for a long time for those of us relying on the income. I thing it is hard to say on a grand scale as every provider brings something different with their services. I just found that during this time I wasn't even getting enquiries so it wasn't so much me, my program or my rates because every enquiry I did get always resulted in a signed contract and great feedback. For me I think it was because there was a sudden onset of mums staying at home and offering home daycare for a good $10-$15 less per day. There were close to 20 who did this. 2 years ago I was getting anywhere from 3-12 enquiries a month and currently I'm lucky if I get 2 a month but sometimes there is a peak. In the new year I got about 12 in 1 week but it was totally random. I don't particularly find any time of the year to be busier with enquiries than the other. Maybe May/June but that is specifically for school aged kids looking for summer care which I don't offer.