Yep, sales of new homes inched up in July  but only because the previous month’s sales were lower than first calculated, according to CNNMoney.com story. This is not the first time that the number-crunchers made a mistake. 

The government offered more discouraging news about the housing sector on Tuesday, reporting that new home sales rose slightly in July only after revising the previous month’s number sharply lower.

Sales for July came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 515,000, up 2.4% from 503,000 in the previous month, the Census Bureau reported. Last month, Census had put the June figure at 530,000.

The change marks the fourth of the past five reports that Census has slashed the previous month’s number. The trend worries economists who say a hoped-for stabilization of the housing market remains elusive.