Tampa Bay area home prices have taken a magic carpet ride back to November 2003, according to the latest S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index.

The well-regarded index of 20 major U.S. cities shows our home prices, as of February, retreated 39 percent since the July 2006 peak. Year over year, prices have fallen 23 percent.

They should call it the Case-Chiller index.

Case-Shiller said price across the nation declined at a slower rate in February, perhaps the first step toward stabilization.

Some news organs are jumping the gun by discussing home price recoveries. The Associated Press, for example, called February's Case-Shiller report "fresh signs Tuesday that the housing recession may be hitting bottom."

That's a ludicrous exaggeration. Most housing analysts I've read don't expect home prices to stop sliding until 2010.