With winter approaching, Chicagoans wondering how tough the weather will be are getting one clear warning: Their personal finances are liable to get a case of frostbite.
The big concern is sharply higher costs for natural gas, used to heat the overwhelming majority of homes in the area. Nicor, the utility serving most suburbs and Northern Illinois, estimated its average residential customer will pay almost $450 more for natural gas supplies in the coming winter, or $971, almost double the cost of a year ago.
