Case Shiller Index

My buddy Chico is a mortgage broker. His background is both musician and computer genius, so when we debate politics or economics it's basically like talking to a middle schooler. So we had a bet. I bet him that housing prices would be lower in May of 2008 than they are today.

To which he responded "well how are we going to measure that?"

I suggested, "the Case Shiller index."

"Well I never heard of that, sounds kind of bogus. We're not using that."

"OK, what about the OFHEO House Price Index?"

"You know, I never heard of that either and besides which the government isn't taking into consideration what they're appraised at, only what they sell for."

Which is CLASSICALLY leftist. If the source, no matter how authoritative or unbiased
doesn't produce the results you want, then it's biased and unreliable and under the control of George Bush.

So here is a simple lesson in economics folks, especially for all you schmucks in the housing industry that insist there is no housing bubble;

1. CASE SHILLER IS THE AUTHORITATIVE SOURCE FOR HOUSING PRICES, END OF STORY!

2. HOUSING PRICES HAVE GONE DOWN AND WILL CONTINUE TO GO DOWN, END OF STORY!

Here's a spiffy little chart that shows you national and Minneapolis area prices.