Is America’s housing freeze revealing deeper cracks in consumer confidence?
In this revealing breakdown, Mike and Susan analyze the latest earnings report from the country’s largest home improvement retailer—an economic bellwether that offers real-time insight into U.S. consumer behavior, inflation fatigue, and housing market paralysis.

This episode dives into:

• Why revenue is up but profits are down—and what that margin squeeze tells us
• How housing turnover at 40-year lows is crushing demand for big-ticket remodels
• The shift from DIY customers to professional contractors, and what’s driving it
• Their long-term pivot to wholesale infrastructure, trade credit, and AI-powered planning tools
• Why foot traffic is falling, employee sentiment is cracking, and internal pressure may be rising
• The looming $50 billion backlog of delayed repairs across aging U.S. homes
• Whether the American middle class or the infrastructure itself will break first

It’s not just a retail story—it’s a snapshot of where the U.S. economy stands now, and where it may be headed next.