I view the median price like a weather report that is a week or a month behind. Would you use it to plan your family barbecue? Sometimes the best way to get a grip on the weather is to walk out your front door. I try to get an idea of what the market is doing in a more informal way. I do things like follow the number of Craig’s List postings, the number of NODs on Foreclosure.com, and the number of listings on Zip Realty or Realtor.com. I like to see if the number of listings are increasing/decreasing, and whether the price is going up or down. Put these into an Excel spreadsheet and you have your own little housing trend index!
