The DJIA closes above 10,000 . . . gaining some 53 percent in the past seven months. Yet, your chiefly optimistic, sometimes skeptical reporter can't help but wonder . . . are we really on the road to recovery?

She's not the only one with the inquiring mind. Investor sentiments seemed quite divided as the DJIA yo-yoed this week amid surprising news on the housing front, not to mention GMAC's request for a third round of federal assistance.

Onto this week's headlines . . .

TIME TO RAISE THE ROOF ON HOUSING STOCKS



What's Your Take on the Slump?

It seems slumps this time of year aren't limited to World Series players. The markets faltered as fair-weather investors — many of whom were giddy on better-than-expected earnings reports a mere two weeks ago — began to question the strength of the economic recovery following word of weaker-than-expected new home sales earlier this week.

That said, the stars of several companies in the Homebuilding industry have shined brightly in past listings of the Complete Roster of Quality Companies. Your reporter doesn't expect to make any headlines when she notes this took place in July 2006 . . . and that a lot has changed since then. Indeed, all's been quiet on the home front . . . at least, in the SC Housing Forums for these companies. Don't let it stay that way.

• Beazer Homes USA, Inc., ticker symbol BZH on the NYSE, is a mid-sized company in the Homebuilding industry; Take Stock Quality Rating July 2006: 10.
• Meritage Homes Corp., ticker symbol MTH on the NYSE, is a mid-sized company in the Homebuilding industry; Take Stock Quality Rating July 2006: 8.4.
• Orleans Homebuilders, Inc., ticker symbol OHB on the AMEX, is a mid-sized company in the Homebuilding industry; Take Stock Quality Rating July 2006: 10.
• Pulte Homes, Inc., ticker symbol PHM on the NYSE, is a large company in the Homebuilding industry; Take Stock Quality Rating July 2006: 8.4.
• Toll Brothers, Inc., ticker symbol TOL on the NYSE, is a large company in the Homebuilding industry; Take Stock Quality Rating July 2006: 7.4.

Isn't it high time to raise the roof? (And long overdue.) What's your take on housing stocks — in the short and long term? Get on these SC Forums and "build" your case. Your long-term investor cohorts eagerly await your pearls of wisdom . . .

DEFINITELY A TREAT



Toolkit 6 Features Direct Upload of SSGs, Posts, to SC Forums

. . . Not to mention, the fruits of your labor. Long-term, fundamental investors can no more resist newly updated, freshly posted SSGs from their like-minded investor cohorts than can a trick-or-treater bypass Mrs. Dohickey's house — where it's said there are full-size candy bars to be had — on Halloween night.

Enter the ability to not only upload an SSG analysis directly from the Toolkit software into the SC forums, but to post to the forums from inside of Toolkit as well. This, according to StockCentral Developer Joe Craig, is a treat for every season. "One great new feature in Toolkit 6 gives users the ability to upload their stock studies and participate in discussions at StockCentral without leaving Toolkit," he told your very own reporter in an exclusive interview. "Just click on the Community button and upload a stock study, ask a question, or contribute to an ongoing discussion."

TRY IT; YOU’LL LIKE IT



Toolkit 6 Demo Version is Free for the Asking . . .

You don't have to have Toolkit in order to upload SSG files to the SC Forums . . . but it sure makes life a lot easier. Why not download a demo version of the Toolkit software and see for yourself?

TODAY'S ENTIRELY RELEVANT QUOTATION



" Don't be afraid of a weak recovery; that's not going to be a shock to anyone. Don't be afraid of a weak consumer. The things that everyone's talking about don't move markets."



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Alec Young, equity-market strategist at Standard & Poor's