Local income in which the amount divides the income distribution of 4-Person Families into two equal groups, half having income above that amount and half having income below that amount.

Prevailing rate of a conventional, conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage.

The interest rate at which depository institutions lend balances (federal funds) at the Federal Reserve to other depository institutions overnight.

Local historical home prices are based upon one to three separate indexes. The use of these indexes depends upon the city's (MSA's) size and volume of sales.

Originally conceived by Karl E. Case and Robert J. Shiller in the 1980s, the Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes (now known officially as the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes) measures home prices based on recorded changes in home values and a repeat sales methodology.

Median sales price in which the amount divides the metro area sales price into two equal groups, half having sold above that amount and half having sold below that amount. Officially known as the Median Sales Price of Existing Single-Family Homes for Metropolitan Areas.

The House Price Index (HPI) is a measure of the cost of single-family houses published by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO).
The HPI is measured quarterly and tracks repeat sales of houses using a modified version of the weighted-repeat sales methodology. This means that, to a large extent, it is able to adjust for the quality of the homes sold, unlike simple averages.

The persistent, substantial rise in the general level of prices related to an increase in the volume of money and resulting in the loss of value of currency.
Beginning with Q4:2006 thebubblebuster.com will utilize the median CPI less shelter for inflationary data. Consequently, prior quarter comparisons may yield inconsistencies. (See the source link for additional details)

A simple method of forecasting variations in a quantitative variable. Namely, least-squares regression methods are used to regress a quantitative dependent variable Y (to be predicted) on a constant C and an equally-distant time variable t, the coefficient of which will express the trend variation, where s is a time index.

Monthly mortgage payment is principal & interest only (which does not include hazard insurance, property taxes or any needed private mortgage insurance) for a median priced home financed at the prevailing 30 year mortgage rate.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) are delineated on the basis of a central urbanized area—a contiguous area of relatively high population density and are used to define cities within thebubblebuster.com. The counties containing the core urbanized area are known as the central counties of the MSA. Additional surrounding counties (known as outlying counties) can be included in the MSA if these counties have strong social and economic ties to the central counties as measured by commuting and employment.

The price measured in a particular currency that is directly proportional to the price level of that time period (not adjusted for inflation).

The price measured in a particular currency that is the quantity of money measured as a constant. (eg: the value of the dollar in Q3:2006) This amount is adjusted for inflation.