U.S. home prices posted year-over-year gains for the fourth consecutive quarter as prices rose 10.2% in the period ending in March, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller national index.

The index posted its highest annual returns since 2007, according David Blitzer, head of S&P’s index division.

But the strong gains over the past year may be a bit of a statistical mirage, according to Robert Shiller, a Yale economist and co-founder of the index. “Foreclosure sales are down, so naturally [price] indexes that include foreclosures are up,” he said.  Read more