Personal Finance

pfina

Looking for ways to make the most of your money? Use the resources on this page to help you learn more about how to save, spend, invest, borrow and protect your money. The resources include library databases, government and nonprofit organizations that focus on money management.

Visit the Tax Information page to print forms and find information about Illinois state and federal taxes. The library also has some forms and instruction booklets available and a self-print station to print forms.

If you need help earning money, visit our Jobs & Careers page.

If you need information about starting a business or nonprofit, visit our Business & Nonprofit Services page.

your money

Your Money

You can do a lot of things with your money, but most of what you do falls in the categories of earn, spend, save, borrow and protect. Once you have earned money, should you spend it, save it or protect it? Do you need or want something that you have

consumer

Consumer Help

Several government offices and nonprofit organizations provide help for the consumer to make the best choice for themselves when it comes to products of any kind. 


  • Citizens Utility Board - Tips to lower utility bills, to avoid scams, and to get information about various utilities. Click the Resources tab for
investing

Investing

There are several online resources from government and regulatory agencies that can help you learn about investing. The library also subscribes to two databases, Morningstar Investment Research Center and Value Line Research Center, that have investment education sections with courses, videos, quizzes and glossaries to help you learn more. You will

financial

Financial Planning

Guides for Financial Decisions - Topics such as buying a house, getting an auto loan, paying for college, planning for retirement.


Answers to commonly asked financial questions about topics like auto loans, credit cards, credit reports and scores, mortgages, reverse mortgages, and student loans.


Budgeting - How to create a

further

Further Reading

Here is a list of items about personal finance that are available from the library. To narrow down the list, look at the left margin and click the boxes to choose the format (book, magazine, ebook, etc.), audience, fiction/nonfiction and language if desired. 

children

Teaching Children About Money