Monica Mehta

Home Depot hits an earnings home run.  The retailing giant benefits as home prices rise and consumers feel confident about once again investing in improvement projects.  On a nationwide basis, American homeowners have realized a 12% increase in property values over the past year.  That means 1.2MM homeowners are no longer underwater, but we have a ways to go before we undue the damage done from the last bubble – 20% of mortgages remain underwater and another 25% of borrowers have less than 20% equity in their homes.

Recently chatted with columnist Karin Kemp about why entrepreneurs struggle with high employee turnover. Read the story at Huff Post Small Business

Monica Mehta talks with Adam about why jobs are the most important aspect of restoring our economy. She reveals frightening statistics about the trends of saving money in this country, and explains why it’s important to take financial risks. Later, Alison starts the news talking about the Amber Alert that went out on cell phones across Los Angeles. They also discuss a violent fight on a school bus, and why parents engaging their kids is so important. As the show wraps up, the guys talk about why everyone is a racist, and the 50th anniversary of the cassette tape.  Listen to the episode at AdamCarolla.com

In this episode, Monica chats with syndicated political columnist Bob Franken and comedian Chris Griggs about Anthony Weiner’s very bad week. We then discuss a report that Wellpoint Heathcare is seeing a significant drop in small businesses renewing health plans ahead of ACA deadline.  Finally, as Sept budget talks loom, approval ratings of president and congress at all time lows. Listen or download the podcast here (25 min) Listen or Download on Soundcloud

Americans are not only living large, they’re getting large.  More than 65% are overweight or obese, an increase from 2012 and a staggering rise from just 20 years back. To address this alarming trend, the FDA commissioned a study to track fast food eating habits of participants with GPS devices.  If the argument is that stricter zoning laws that limit where fast food restaurants can locate will help the nation slim down, I’d like to see how lawmakers plan to protect us from fine dining establishments like Per Se where a five course tasting menu tops 5000 calories (that’s like eating 4 Big Macs in one sitting).  I debated this issue along with congressional candidate Ron Meyer and Fortune Magazine’s Adam Lashinsky.

Ex NJ Gov Jon Corzine skates past criminal charges in IMF scandal despite billions of client dollars lost or misappropriated. Regardless, a civil case is sure to follow and Corzine’s worries are far from over. Whether the dealings at IMF were criminal or just bad business practice, Corzine is a scoundrel; there’s here enough evidence to try that case.   I discussed this and other top headlines in business with Charles Payne of Fox News.

A week within the Fed’s hint that bond buying will scale back soon, 30 year mortgage rate spike 0.5% to 4.46%, the highest we’ve seen since 2011.  Catch my conversation with Fox’s Charles Payne and Gary B Smith.

Will XBox save Microsoft?  Is a clobbered Facebook a buy?  McDonalds shines while fastfood declines.  Monica discusses the latest happenings in business with Fox’s Neil Cavuto.