For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"Homebuilders have been in a slump, to say the least," says Jim Farrish, editor of Sector Exchange.

"The technical charts on homebuilders look very similar to those of technology stocks during their rise from 1998-2000. In fact, the index has declined more than 70% peak to trough. Looking toward 2008 and the housing market, we could start to see a turnaround.

"The start is likely to be government aided, which is why we like this as an aggressive play, as the Federal government will put more money into fixing something than corporate America. Current proposals will not come close to fixing it, but will at least put a band aid on the situation and allow the healing process to begin.

"Our vote to benefit here would be Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL). The company has one of the better-looking balance sheets in the industry and management has done a fairly good job of dealing with this downside market.

"It's time to get back to basics; return to those things that everyone still needs regardless of what the stock market is doing," says Jocelynn Drake. "And everyone needs shoes, right?"

The analyst with Schaeffer's Investment Research notes, "Several stocks have managed to weather the storm with remarkable resilience. And a pair of those outperformers is in the footwear sector: Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX) and Deckers Outdoor (NASDAQ: DECK).

Crocs, she explains, is known for its colorful slip-on shoes that are made of a proprietary closed-cell resin. She observes, "The security has staged a stellar rally this year, gaining nearly 139% since the start of 2007."

What's more, she adds, the shares of Crocs have marched steadily higher along their 10-week and 20-week moving averages since late July 2006. From a sentiment standpoint, she points out that short sellers are attempting to call a top to the trendy shoemaker's uptrend.