In today’s newsletter, we’ll talk about our family dog, saving for children’s education, saving for retirement, giving people with disabilities a better life experience, helping people grow their businesses, and more.
During the holidays, I was back home in Gifford with the family, and we brought along Mila, our goldendoodle. Although it was freezing, the cold doesn’t seem to bother her, and she wanted to go for a long walk.
While Mila is getting older, she still has a lot of energy and loves to explore my east central Illinois hometown with its open space, lots of grass, and new smells.
During our last walk, I took her through downtown. As we passed the Gifford State Bank, I remembered one of my best experiences NOT doing business with them.
I had my first savings account there and later, my first checking account. My parents had their personal and business accounts there. Dad got his farm loans there. We knew everyone who worked there.
So, when it was time to buy my first house, the first place I went for a loan was the Gifford State Bank. I sat down with a loan officer and after talking for a while, she told me that I should go elsewhere for my first-time homeowner mortgage. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to do business with me, but they didn’t issue a lot of these home mortgages, and she felt confident I could find a better rate elsewhere. She even suggested another business where I would likely get a lower rate. She told me that if I couldn’t find a better deal, then she’d be happy to help me.
I was surprised that they suggested I take my business elsewhere, but they cared enough about their customers that they wanted them to find the best deal. They knew that long-term relationships are more important than short-term profits, and they also knew that they couldn’t be everything to everyone. They chose to focus on what they were good at.
If they would turn me away when it wasn’t in my best interest, I was pretty confident that when they wanted my business, I was being treated fairly.
I have tried to apply these lessons as the state’s Chief Banking Officer.
We help hundreds of thousands of families save for their children’s education, for their retirement, and to give their children with disabilities a better life experience. We help small businesses, farmers, and entrepreneurs grow their businesses.
And we tell people that if someone else can offer them a better rate or lower fees, they should work with them.
We also help cities, townships, counties, and other local governments invest their money and collect payments. We know that they want their investments to be safe, to have money available to pay their bills, and to earn a good return.
The Illinois Funds is one of those investment vehicles that have provided local governments safety, liquid access, and competitive market rates of return. Established by the General Assembly in 1975, this local government investment pool is one of the nation’s oldest, giving over 1,500 municipalities, school districts, colleges
and universities, and special districts safe and liquid access to fixed income and money markets that they otherwise would be priced out of.
The idea is that these local governments can earn more money for their constituents by pooling resources. And every dollar my office earns for them is a dollar they don’t have to raise in property taxes.
Like my hometown bank, when we aren’t the most competitive, we direct people to where they can save or earn more money. But when we can make their lives easier and reduce their need to raise local taxes, we stand ready to help.
Sincerely,
Michael