Tucson Home Prices Fall 20 percent
May 12, 2009
Post Tags: national association of realtors , poor journalism , Tucson Median Sale Price , Tucson-Citizen
“The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday the median sales price of an existing home in Tucson was $176,000, down from $221,000 in 2008.”
Prices Fell By How Much?
This was the headline for an article in the Tucson Citizen this morning. The report shows it is picked up from The Associated Press.
It is a very GOOD example of POOR journalism. Headline Sensational: YES. But what about the context. For example how is this for a sensational headline “World War Breaks Out” Yep, sensational. Did World War break out? Yes a couple of times. Lately? Why do I use this as an example?
Read the article and tell me when the median sale price dropped 20 percent. It says it was down from $221,000 in 2008, but when in 2009 was it $176,000? A quick look at Tucson MLS statistics show median sale prices for each month since January as follows:
- Jan. $163.250
- Feb. $178,000
- Mar. $165,0o0
- Apr. $164,000
To date in May it is $160,000 Average them all together do you get $176,000?
It looks like $176,000 is high and the percentage of drop in median sale price is more than 20 percent.
But Wait There is More
How about the $221,000 median sale price for 2008?
- Jan. $203,000
- Feb. $199,000
- Mar. $200,000
- Apr. $195,000
- May $201,000
- June $200,000
- July $199,900
- Aug. $185,000
- Sept. $180,500
- Oct. $180,000
- Nov. $178,000
- Dec. $167,900
Do you see that adding up to $221,000 for a Median Sale Price in Tucson?
But Wait There is Even More
Yes, there is more, because we discussed this the other day in Tucson Average and Median Sale Price. If you break out property by Type and Location all those numbers change once again.
The Point of All This
Newspapers are still in the business of selling Newspapers (for awhile yet anyway) And headlines sell papers. Sensational headlines sell even more papers. Who needs the Who, What, When, Where, Why in modern journalism. Don’t let the facts confuse the issue.
Time again for a phrase that came into existence because of the reality on which it was based “Don’t Believe Everything You Read In The Papers”
