Even the "mortgage applications" number is bogus - freaked out applicants filing multiple applications in desperate hopes one will be approved

Ya know, at one point we'll come to see that we couldn't trust one single number coming to us from these REIC trade groups or the government themselves.

Not one single stinking number.

If it wasn't so funny it'd be sad.

Here's the headline today that most of the lazy MSM and Wall Street will trumpet:

Mortgage applications hit highest level in 2 years

Mortgage applications rose last week to the highest level since July 2005 despite a jump in borrowing costs, an industry group said on Wednesday.

And here's the reality from the same article:

The trade group's index continues to be skewed by borrowers filing numerous applications in the hopes of getting one approved, analysts contend.

"Buyers out there are scared about their mortgage applications being turned down, and anecdotes show they are actually applying for more mortgages with more companies," Steve Wyatt, a professor of finance at the Farmer School of Business at Miami University said on Tuesday prior to the release of the MBA report.

"Higher applications are not necessarily as indicative of demand as they might have been before," and have not been translating to higher sales, he said.