Illinois’ state and local effective tax rate ranks the highest in the nation, according to a new study of tax burdens imposed by the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The number of vacant homes in McHenry County was more than 700 in the third quarter of 2018, a 61-unit increase over what it was a year ago, according to real estate numbers reported by ATTOM Data Solutions.

In-state tuition and book costs for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will continue to be among the highest for schools in the Big 10 conference, despite the UI Board of Trustees' vote on Thursday to extend an in-state tuition freeze for the fifth-straight year.

Springs at Crystal Lake, a 97-bed skilled care center in Crystal Lake, was cited by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) for violations of the Nursing Home Care Act in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Alden Terrace of McHenry, a 316-bed skilled care center in McHenry, was cited by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) for violations of the Nursing Home Care Act in the fourth quarter of 2018.

McHenry County College sports programs brought in $5,785 per athlete in revenue in 2016, meaning its athletes on average generated the 81st highest sports revenue of any school in Illinois that year, according to a McHenry Times analysis of U.S. Department of Education data.

McHenry County College ranked No. 67 for student athletic participation in the state, according to a McHenry Times analysis of college sports participation.

McHenry County had the eighth lowest home affordability index in Illinois in the third quarter, according to an analysis of 440 counties by ATTOM Data Solutions.

In a list of the 30 most populous counties in Illinois, McHenry County ranked No. 22 for the rate of abortions performed there in 2017, according to an Illinois Department of Public Health report issued in December, which tracks abortions performed on an annual basis.

McHenry County accounted for 326 of the 39,329 abortions performed statewide in 2017, according to an Illinois Department of Public Health report issued in December, which tracks abortions performed on an annual basis.

Property owners in Prairie Grove paid more than 3.2 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s nearly three times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Cary paid nearly 3.2 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s nearly three times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Lakemoor paid nearly 3.1 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s nearly three times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Harvard paid nearly 3.1 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s nearly three times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Crystal Lake paid nearly 3 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s more than two times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in McHenry paid nearly 2.9 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s more than two times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Woodstock paid more than 2.8 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s more than two times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Fox River Grove paid nearly 2.9 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s more than two times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

Property owners in Algonquin paid nearly 2.9 percent of the value of their home in taxes last year. That’s more than two times the national average, according to an LGIS analysis of real estate sales data in McHenry County from Jan 1. to June 30.

In May 2012, John Niederkorn paid $555,000 – about $610,000 in today's dollars – for a four-bedroom, three-bath home at 42 Braeburn Lane in Barrington Hills. The home's 2012 property taxes were $14,821, an effective rate then of nearly 2.7 percent.