More double talk from housing experts?
The Case-Shiller housing indices are the gold standard of the real estate industry, tracking resales of existing homes across the country.
But my head is aching after reading the press release on the numbers by the S&P Indices, which puts out the crucial market gauge devised by Karl Case, professor emeritus at Wellesley College, and Yale University economist Robert Shiller.
The numbers clearly show continued year-over-year declines in housing prices - Greater Boston prices were down 3.2 percent in May.
Yet the press release starts off touting seasonal increases seen in several cities in May over this April, the heart of the spring sales season.
"Data through May 2011 ... showed a second consecutive month of increase in prices for the 10-City and 20-City Composites," reads the opening line of the release.
You have to read down into the second page before you get to this fairly confusing disclaimer/statement.
"We see some seasonal improvements with May's data," says David M. Blitzer chairman of the Index Committee at the S&P Indices.
But the next line basically cancels out the first.
"This is a seasonal period of stronger demand for houses, so monthly price increases are to be expected and were seen in 16 of the 20 cities."
The final line in the statement completes the reversal.
"The concern is that much of the montly gains are only seasonal."
That's right, much of those gains were - there is a chart buried even deeper in the release that offers the seasonally adjusted May numbers - there was little if any change over April.
So why in the world are the guardians of the prized Case-Shiller numbers leading off their latest report with arguably meaningless, nonseasonally adjusted price increases in the heart of the spring market?
If I were to be uncharitable, I would say it is an attempt to sugar coat another dose of bad news.
If so, it does the numbers a big disservice.
