NAR playing around with "pending" statistics?
I heard this press release from NAR on the radio this morning..some quotes:
Given the recent threads here on the change in NAR's definition of "pending", are they playing fast and loose with the numbers here?
The Pending Home Sales Index,1 a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in April, rose 6.7 percent to 90.3 from a reading of 84.6 in March, and is 3.2 percent above April 2008 when it was 87.5.
...
The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast shot up 32.6 percent to 78.9 in April and is 0.8 percent above a year ago. In the Midwest the index rose 9.8 percent to 90.4 and is 11.1 percent above April 2008. The index in the South slipped 0.2 percent to 93.0 in April but is 3.5 percent higher than a year ago. In the West the index rose 1.8 percent to 94.8 but is 2.9 percent below April 2008.
Given the recent threads here on the change in NAR's definition of "pending", are they playing fast and loose with the numbers here?
Comments
We already know what their economists are like. I think we can guess what passes for a statistician to the Realtors.
Reminds me of a comment I heard about one the dozens of the Sonic's no-talent big men that passed through town, back when Marques Johnson was doing color. "I wouldn't say he was a poor man's Carl Malone, I think he's more a homeless person's Carl Malone."
Too funny.
We'll see if the statistics over the next few months bear out what NAR is claiming.
The National Association of Realtors is a closed club that sells memberships. They use that money to lobby Congress and promote the Real Estate business. Last year I heard that the National Association of Realtors had elevated the standing of the Real Estate profession.
In my opinion the National Association of Realtors is in business to sell memberships.
Back in the day when Real Estate was an unregulated business there was a case to be made about a need for some over sight. In my opinion the National Association of Realtors is the wolf watching the chickens.
Bad education sponsored by and promoted by the National Association of Realtors is my number one complaint. This last series of short sale classes was absolutely the last straw, but probably not, they do have a very strong enforcement, I mean lobby.
Another wild left field opinion I have is the the National Association of Realtors colluded with the Master Builders Association along with the Mortgage Brokers of America to run up Real Estate prices across the country.
The government was of course involved, a conspiracy theory has to involve the government, but the National Association of Realtors was at the fore front.
There are a couple of things about the comment i would like to make clear. I did use the phrase National Association of Realtors often. As it has been stated on other blogs the National Association of Realtors does monitor blogs for mention of the National Association of Realtors or the use of the logo. So I wanted to be sure this caught the attention.
Second is that I know there is no conspiracy, but it sounds right. I have been to the meetings in the past and know that these bunch of yahoos stand around talking about how we can get people motivated to buy and sell Real Estate. It is as pathetic as an infomercial.
Third is that there are dozens and maybe hundreds of good Real Estate agents in the Seattle area. Some are members and some are not. The dues you pay to self promote through the National Association of Realtors means nothing.