Certainly if something is purchased infrequently or by few people it will not provide enough data to learn how about how purchasing power has eroded. Houses are

Certainly if something is purchased infrequently or by few people it will not provide enough data to learn how about how purchasing power has eroded. Houses are a poor fit no matter how you slice it as the typical person will buy very few in their lifetime, with often decades between purchases. We like to track inflation on a monthly basis. That requires things that most people purchase on much more regular schedule to see how their behaviour is changing on a regular schedule.