by Rick Haglund Michigan hospitals – including Munson Healthcare – will likely take a financial hit from a new auto insurance law that will replace the state’s 48-year-old no-fault insurance system. Meanwhile, it’s unclear how much consumers will save under the new law, which takes effect July...
Local business leaders have high hopes that an unconventional, little-known federal tax incentive could pump millions of dollars of new commercial and residential investment into a low-income section of Grand Traverse County. A 6.2 square-mile swath of land including a large area of Garfield Township and...
Much of the recent news coming out of Cherry Capital Airport has been about the expansion of commercial passenger service to new locations, including cities in California, Florida and Texas. But there is a lot of activity happening in the private business travel and personal aircraft...
In the 1990s, Second Chance Body Armor was the darling of the northern Michigan business scene, with legends of its founder actually shooting himself to prove the efficacy of its products. In 2004, a recall put the company in a tailspin, its assets sold off. But now,...
The merger trend among local independent insurance agencies, which shifted into high gear last year, is also hitting the public accounting sector. Traverse City-based Dennis, Gartland & Niergarth (DGN), northern Michigan’s largest, locally owned public accounting firm, last month purchased Hill, Schroderus & Company, a Petoskey-based...
Financial institutions have long competed for deposits using a variety of lures, including promotional interest rates, tote bags and toasters. Frankfort-based State Savings Bank, which entered the Traverse City market last year, even offers a free pie to anyone who switches a checking account from another...
When Schmuckal Oil Company was sold in August to Ohio-based True North Energy LLC, it marked the end of a well-known Traverse City business that Art Schmuckal and George Slane started 64 years ago with little more than a contract to sell home heating oil. “They...
Banks and credit unions are making numerous moves to capitalize on the region’s bustling business and population growth. Some are building new offices and branches. Others are consolidating to improve efficiencies. And there are a couple of new entrants into the market. [caption id="attachment_24624" align="alignleft" width="405"] Construction...
Bankers and credit union executives take a variety of things into consideration when deciding how much interest to pay depositors for holding their money and how much to charge for loans. Among them are the current need for deposits to fund loans. Inflation forecasts and what...
The name of your local independent insurance agency may not be changing, but its ownership might soon be — if it hasn’t already. Several northwest Michigan agencies selling property, casualty, business, health and other insurance products have been acquired in recent years by large companies, such...
