Monthly Archives: January 2016

//January

State Without a Budget

  Illinois is in a fix. Thousands of Illinoisans and organizations have been terribly affected by the Illinois budget crisis, and that number continues to grow every day. Apparently, the state will have to notch its belt since rumblings from Springfield indicate that money will only be produced by March or April if at all. Background Ever since 1215, on the fields of Runnymede, when the barons of England forced King John to sign the Magna Carta, the legislative branch has held the power of the purse in the Anglo-American tradition of government. The budget is renewed every three years and is collated from the budgets of the various agencies who send their lists to the Office of Management and Budget. The results reflect the governor’s priorities and interests as well as the projected money the state has to spend in a given fiscal year. Problem is that in an [...]

By |2016-02-05T16:11:08-05:00January 28th, 2016|English Articles, Local Events|Comments Off on State Without a Budget
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What’s Your City’s Credit Score?

It’s amazing how much the three digit number of a person’s credit score tells about the financial habits of that person as anyone would know if they try to rent or buy a home, seek a loan, or otherwise find themselves in a situation where another wants to run your FICO score. WalletHub did just that the other week using TransUnion to compare the average credit scores of residents in 2,570 U.S. cities as of September 2015. To their figurative credit, they listed each of these cities and pointed out the 30 that were in the top 99th percentile. Curious to know how your financial habits compare with your neighbors or maybe you wonder where the people who are most likely to repay their debts live? Wonder no longer. Turn here for the news. The Villages in Florida top the list hitting an almost 800 score (the average score of [...]

By |2016-02-09T17:17:52-05:00January 17th, 2016|English Articles|Comments Off on What’s Your City’s Credit Score?
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Here’s Your Turf for Retirement!

Here are the ten best places in Illinois that Niche - a research site that helps people  explore what a place is really like - determined would suit you if and once you retire. Niche came to their conclusion by evaluating several factors that may interest retirees. These include similar age population, housing costs, property taxes, crime rates, weather and access to things like restaurants, golf courses and doctors. You'd think that Northfield, Highland Park, or Deerfield would match the profile. Strangely enough, Niche omitted these suburbs. Niche analyzed more than 4,200 towns and ranked more than 1,600. Here are their results. 10) Carlinville, IL Macoupin County 9) Benton, IL Franklin County 8) Fairfield, IL Wayne County 7) Du Quoin, IL Perry County 6) Flora, IL Clay County 5) Jerseyville, IL Jersey County 4) Metropolis, IL Massac County 3) Olney, IL Richland County 2) Eureka, IL Woodford County 1) Marion, [...]

By |2016-02-09T17:12:07-05:00January 6th, 2016|English Articles|Comments Off on Here’s Your Turf for Retirement!
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