Price Indexing

• US 20080168004A1
• Filed: 07/06/2007
• Published: 07/10/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Radar Logic, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Radar Logic, Inc.
• Inventors: Kagarlis, Marios A., Fiddaman, Thomas S.
• Application Number:
  US11/774,434
• Publication Number:
  US 20080168004A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/36R
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis

Abstract

Transactions involving assets that share a common characteristic are represented as respective data points associated with values of the assets. The data points include transaction value information. The data points belong to sets associated with respective geographical areas. Data points of at least two of the sets are aggregated into a superset representing transactions of a larger geographical region. A hypothetical probability density function is represented by a parametrization that describes the data points of the superset. An index is formed of values associated with the assets using at least one of the determined parameters.

Claims

1. A computer-based method comprising

representing transactions involving assets that share a common characteristic, as respective data points associated with values of the assets, the data points including transaction value information, the data points belonging to sets associated with respective geographical areas,

aggregating data points of at least two of the sets into a superset representing transactions of a larger geographical region

representing a hypothetical probability density function by a parametrization that describes the data points of the superset, and

forming an index of values associated with the assets using at least one of the determined parameters.

2. The method of claim 1 in which the assets comprise real estate.

3. The method of claim 1 in which the data points represent transactions in real estate.

4. The method of claim 1 in which the parametrization comprises a power law parametrization.

5. The method of claim 1 in which the hypothetical probability density function comprises two or more power law regions defined by straight lines in log-log space.

6. The method of claim 5 in which there are three or more power law regions.

7. The method of claim 1 in which the hypothetical probability density function comprises a weighted sum of probability density functions for data points belonging to the sets associated with respective geographical areas.

8. The method of claim 7 in which the probability density functions are weighted by respective transaction volumes in the respective geographic areas.

9. The method of claim 1 also including computing a maximum Kolmogorov statistic with respect to the data points.

10. The method of claim 5 also including, if a measure of confidence is below a threshold, analyzing an appropriateness of the number of power-law regions defined by the parameterization of the aggregated superset.

11. The method of claim 1 in which the geographical areas comprise metropolitan statistical areas.

12. The method of claim 1 in which a feature of the hypothetical probability function is used to test conformance between spectral features of the superset of data points and the parameterization.

13. The method of claim 1 in which the data points belonging to the superset are selected by user-defined criteria for use in computing a composite subindex.