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A nightmarish reality brings us this week’s Marketplace Money Buzzword: Case-Shiller Index.

The Case-Shiller Index looks at the value of existing single-family homes and this being the scariest time of year, the latest figures were downright ghoulish.

Home prices in 20 U.S. metro areas slumped in August by the most in at least six years and eight cities reported the largest price declines ever.

The figures scared the pants off economists, who were hoping they’d get a treat, a sweeter outlook for the housing market.

But turns out the economy might be in for one costly trick.