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Banks

Associated Bank
344-3232
1865 N. Henderson St
309-9131
50 E. Main St
Associate Bank

Business Forms & Systems

Flores Printers
309-341-1303
541 Lincoln St

Check Cashing Services

Advanced America Cash Advance
342-1700
750 N Henderson St
Advance America Cash Advance

The Cash Store
342-5886
1516 N Henderson St
The Cash Store

Investment Advisory Services

 Investment Centers of America Inc
309-342-3295
1380 N Henderson St

Investment Planners Inc
309-344-5225
975 N Henderson St

Life Management
309-342-9699
140 E Main St

Senior Financial Investments
309-341-3125

Stonebasin Capital Management, Inc.
309-426-1591
Stonebasin Capital Management, Inc.

 Wall Street Integrity

by Craig Woolman
Stonebasin Capital Management, Inc.

Our financial system is in trouble when Wall Street firms decide it is more important to make unreasonable amounts of money, by sticking investors with excessive investment fees rather than making business decisions based on integrity. Business decisions should be based on integrity first and profits second. What is Wall Streets responsibility to investors?  Is it maximizing profits at the unfair expense of investors or is it making a fair profit and helping the general public invest and save responsibly for their future and retirement?  Wall Street should be committed to the latter. 

 The Securities and Exchange Commission (S.E.C.) was created by Congress to regulate the securities markets and protect investors.   The S.E.C. primarily focuses on protecting individual investors from the top down.  This means they try to regulate the financial institutions at the top and hopefully investors will be protected at the bottom.  Why is this not working? The rules protecting investors from the top down need to change dramatically.  In addition, more attention needs to be given to protecting investors from the bottom up.

Most individual investors believe they have very little, if any, control over their investments, including costs.  Even with congress calling for more investment cost disclosure, this will not be enough.  Cost disclosure is important but only focuses on one part of the bigger picture.  Pieces are missing.

Most investors do not understand the wide variety of investment products, terminology, strategies or what are fair prices to pay for services provided by the investment community.  I believe most investors don’t even know if they are paying excessive fees. 

The complexity of investment products causes public confusion.  This general lack of understanding opens the door for many Wall Street firms to take advantage and maximize profits unfairly at the public’s expense.  For example: how many readers have actually read a mutual fund prospectus.  Prospectuses were created to protect investors.  However, they were made so complicated and tortuous to read and decipherer that most investors simply tossed them in the garbage.  How does a prospectus protect investors that most refuse to read?  They don’t.  In my opinion, prospectuses protect financial institutions more than the individual investor.  

Excessive investment fees are the biggest controllable subtraction of individual wealth.  How do we define excessive?  There are many ways.  One way, for example, is to look at different mutual fund charges within the same mutual fund group. Such as funds that invest in U.S. stocks only. There are dramatic cost differences between lower cost funds (.18%) yearly verses average cost of funds (1.63%) yearly. You may be paying multiple times more for one fund over another.  Money managers are special, but not that special.  They get paid big bucks whether they make you money or not.  There are hundreds of money managers that basically do the same thing in slightly different ways.  So don’t over pay them.  It’s your money.  Shop around.  Depending on how much you are investing, shopping properly can save you hundreds if not multiple thousands of dollars annually.

Demand full cost disclosure from anyone who provides you investment advice. 


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Suze Orman

Managing debts when the economy slumps

Gregory Pennington

MB Financial Bank, N.A., Chicago, Illinois, Assumes All of the Deposits of Heritage Community Bank, Glenwood, Illinois

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 27, 2009  Media Contact:
Andrew Gray (202) 898-7192
Cell: (202) 494-1049
E-mail: angray@fdic.gov
 

Heritage Community Bank, Glenwood, Illinois, was closed today by the Illinois Department of Financial Professional Regulation, Division of Banking, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with MB Financial Bank, N.A., Chicago, Illinois, to assume all of the deposits of Heritage Community Bank.

The four offices of Heritage Community Bank will reopen as branches of MB Financial Bank on Saturday. Depositors of Heritage Community Bank will automatically become depositors of MB Financial Bank. Deposits will continue to be insured by the FDIC, so there is no need for customers to change their banking relationship to retain their deposit insurance coverage. Customers of both banks should continue to use their existing branches until MB Financial Bank can fully integrate the deposit records of Heritage Community Bank.

Over the weekend, depositors of Heritage Community Bank can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.

As of December 5, 2008, Heritage Community Bank had total assets of $232.9 million and total deposits of $218.6 million. In addition to assuming all of the deposits of the failed bank, including those from brokers, MB Financial Bank agreed to purchase approximately $230.5 million in assets at a discount of $14.5 million. The FDIC will retain the remaining assets for later disposition.

The FDIC and MB Financial Bank entered into a loss-share transaction. MB Financial Bank will share in the losses on approximately $181 million in assets covered under the agreement. The loss-sharing arrangement is projected to maximize returns on the assets covered by keeping them in the private sector. The agreement also is expected to minimize disruptions for loan customers as they will maintain a banking relationship.

Customers who have questions about today's transaction can call the FDIC toll-free at 1-800-823-5680. The phone number will be operational this evening until 9:00 p.m., CST; on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., CST; on Sunday from noon to 6:00 p.m., CST; and thereafter from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., CST. Interested parties can also visit the FDIC's Web site at http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/heritagebank.html.

The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund will be $41.6 million. MB Financial Bank's acquisition of all the deposits was the "least costly" resolution for the FDIC's Deposit Insurance Fund compared to alternatives. Heritage Community Bank is the fifteenth FDIC-insured institution to fail in the nation this year and the third in the state. The last FDIC-insured institution closed in Illinois was Corn Belt Bank and Trust Company, Pittsfield, on February 13, 2009.

Heritage Community Bank is not affiliated with Heritage Bank of Central Illinois, Heritage Bank of Schaumburg, or Heritage State Bank, Lawrenceville.

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Congress created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in 1933 to restore public confidence in the nation's banking system. The FDIC insures deposits at the nation's 8,305 banks and savings associations and it promotes the safety and soundness of these institutions by identifying, monitoring and addressing risks to which they are exposed. The FDIC receives no federal tax dollars – insured financial institutions fund its operations.

FDIC press releases and other information are available on the Internet at www.fdic.gov, by subscription electronically (go to www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html) and may also be obtained through the FDIC's Public Information Center (877-275-3342 or 703-562-2200). PR-31-2009
 

Illinois Association of Mortgage Professionals Nominates Capital Financial Bancorp Inc. for Four Prestigious Awards

OAK BROOK, IL, February 20, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Illinois Association of Mortgage Professionals held their 13th annual Industry Awards ceremony on February 12th. Now in their thirteenth year, the Industry Awards recognizes the contributions and successes of lenders, mortgage companies and their affiliates. Nominees must have proficiency as demonstrated by the Nominee's success in the mortgage industry through their outstanding participation and profile within the industry. Their profile must include a broad breadth of scope of product & experience, a high level of expertise of the industry, which has gained them the respect of both peers and their customer base.

Capital Financial Bancorp Inc. was nominated for four top honors this year. Brian Augustine, CRMS and Tory Tarsitano, CRMS, were both nominated for 2008 Loan Officer of the Year. Kathy Marcinkowski was nominated for 2008 Processor of the Year. The company also took the nomination for 2008 Mortgage Company of the Year.

"It's humbling to continually receive these honorable nominations, particularly in the current market climate. We stand behind our team and are devoted to providing the best possible work environment in the industry." Tory Tarsitano, CRMS.

Capital Financial Bancorp Inc has been an industry leader since 1996 with their goal being to have every client's mortgage handled with the utmost care from open to close. Their shared vision was to make the entire lending process seamless and comfortable. They believe if they put their clients' needs before the dollars they earn - they will continue to be successful and do the absolute best thing for each and every client.

Capital's goal for 2009 is to stay at the forefront of industry knowledge, provide the best in mortgage solutions for their customers and encourage their loan originators to be leaders in the mortgage industry.

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Wisconsin and Illinois 2009 Conventional Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Mortgage Loan Limits

Wisconsin and Illinois FHA loan limits set to chance January 1st, 2009. Visit our website at www.AmeristarMadison.com
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRLog (Press Release) – Nov 12, 2008 – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced late Friday that the conforming loan limit will remain $417,000 for 2009 for most areas in the U.S. but specified higher limits in certain cities and counties which does not include any city or county in Wisconsin or Illinois. The conforming loan limit is the maximum size of loans that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can purchase in 2009.

Following the provisions of HERA, FHFA has set loan limits for “high-cost” areas in 2009. These limits are set equal to 115 percent of local median house prices and cannot exceed 150 percent of the standard limit, which is $625,500 for one-unit homes in the continental U.S. The new limits affect loans purchased by an Enterprise in 2009, unless the loans were made permanently eligible for purchase under the Economic Stimulus Act enacted earlier in 2008 and has generally higher limits.