Barbara O'Connor has sold more than $22 million worth of houses and condos in the O'Connors' home ward after the projects first got a thumbs up from her husband. And she has sold homes worth millions of dollars in other parts of the city for developers who at one time or another have come to her husband for help.

This is what had me falling out of my chair laughing:

Patrick O'Connor said his wife's success has nothing to do with developers' dependence on his approval. And, he said, there is nothing wrong with him making zoning decisions on projects where his wife ultimately earns a commission.

"While I am concerned about perception, I am more concerned about the laws of the state and the ethics ordinance that the city has," Patrick O'Connor said in an April interview in his City Hall office.

Even though the O'Connors file a joint income-tax return, the alderman and city Ethics Board officials say there is no conflict of interest because he doesn't have a direct personal stake in his wife's business. The alderman described his wife as "a private individual in a private business with her own career."

Before her real estate career, Barbara O'Connor was among several members of the O'Connor family who popped up briefly on the City Hall payroll in the 1980s. The alderman defended the hiring of his relatives, but Barbara O'Connor soon left the city payroll and later became a real estate agent.

Of course she did. She can make more money that way.

Source: By Ideal Investment Corner http://idealinvestment.blogspot.com/