Betting on a housing recovery

By Paul R. La Monica, CNNMoney
2009-3-25 13:09:39

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Has the housing market finally hit bottom? It's probably too soon to say -- but Wall Street sure seems to think so.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new-home sales rose almost 5% last month after hitting their lowest point ever in January. Economists were expecting a decline of about 3%

This comes on the heels of two reports showing a better-than-expected gain in existing-home sales and the first increase in construction of new homes since June.

Investors have taken notice. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) exchange-traded fund spiked about 8% higher Wednesday morning. The ETF includes several leading homebuilders, as well as companies with strong ties to the housing market like Home Depot (HD, Fortune 500) and Lowe's (LOW, Fortune 500) and paint maker Sherwin Williams (SHW, Fortune 500).

	Investment Basic Investment Overview Investment Approache Fundamentals Data Investment Stories www.fxj108.com	Betting on a housing recovery By Paul R. La Monica, CNNMoney 2009-3-25 13:09:39 NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Has the housing market finally hit bottom? It's probably too soon to say -- but Wall Street sure seems to think so. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new-home sales rose almost 5% last month after hitting their lowest point ever in January. Economists were expecting a decline of about 3% This comes on the heels of two reports showing a better-than-expected gain in existing-home sales and the first increase in construction of new homes since June. Investors have taken notice. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) exchange-traded fund spiked about 8% higher Wednesday morning. The ETF includes several leading homebuilders, as well as companies with strong ties to the housing market like Home Depot (HD, Fortune 500) and Lowe's (LOW, Fortune 500) and paint maker Sherwin Williams (SHW, Fortune 500).