First the breathless note from CNN about housing prices being the highest in 9 years just before bed. Thinking (i) that’s surprising given the blowoff top in 2006 and (ii) here goes CNN marketing our current occupant of the Executive branch of our federal government, to bed I went. Come morning for me, this:
Correction: Home prices rose in July to their 2003 level, but remain lower than the peak in 2006. CNN’s previous alert erroneously stated that home prices had risen to the highest level in nine years.
Gotta say, that’s pretty lame. Now if only CNN could adjust for inflation as it learns to read price charts, we could get some better understanding of where things stand relative to the past. Such shallow reporting. Where’s the inflation adjustment? The MN Fed has an easy to use calculator here (funny numbers but it’s something of an effort).
Cheerleading intentional devaluation of our currency should be the job of the Fed and Administration, not the so-called Fourth Estate. Also, where are the stories about folks living on fixed incomes suffering in this ZIRP economy, and the huge annual transfers of wealth (ca. $40 Bn p.a. I’ve read) from them to debtors and banks? Other than from Glenn Reynolds in USA Today of course.