Handbook on Residential Property Prices Indices (RPPIs). 2013 edition

RPPIs are key statistics for economic and monetary policy-makers as well as for citizens and households across the world. Among their professional uses, they serve to monitor macroeconomic imbalances and the risk exposure of the financial sector.

For most citizens, buying a residential property is the most important transaction during their lifetime. Residential properties represent the most significant component of household expenses and, at the same time, their most valuable assets. Residential property prices indices (RPPIs) are index numbers measuring the rate at which the prices of residential properties are changing over time.

RPPIs are key statistics for economic and monetary policy-makers as well as for citizens and households across the world. Among their professional uses, they serve to monitor macroeconomic imbalances and the risk exposure of the financial sector.

This handbook provides comprehensive guidelines for the compilation of RPPIs and explains in depth the methods and best practices used to calculate an RPPI. It also examines the underlying economic and statistical concepts and principles guiding the methodological choices on which the indices are based. The handbook primarily addresses official statisticians in charge of producing RPPIs, and provides a harmonized methodological and practical framework for all parties interested in their compilation.

Written by leading academics in index number theory and by recognized experts in RPPIs compilation, this handbook was co-ordinated by Eurostat, with the collaboration of the ILO, the IMF, OECD, UNECE and the World Bank.