The Top 5 Contractor Scams and How to Avoid Them

Crooks go where the money is. So with Americans spending as much as $22 billion a year on construction projects, it’s no surprise that home improvement has become a favorite target for fraud artists. Some of these shady characters use amazingly well-polished contractor scams that are tricky to spot until it’s too late.

The vast majority of contractors are honest, hardworking professionals. Protecting yourself against the few bad apples requires checking references, having a solid contract, and being alert to the warning signs of these top five contractor scams

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Top 10 real estate boomtowns: 2012

Rank Metro area
1 Raleigh-Cary, N.C.
2 Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, Wash.
3 Austin-Round Rock, Texas
4 Provo-Orem, Utah
5 Hinesville-Fort Stewart, Ga.
6 Logan, Utah-Idaho
7 Grand Junction, Colo.
8 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
9 Idaho Falls, Idaho
10 Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C.
Source: Proximity One

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I.F. cheaper for many despite higher tax rate

Ammon's long-touted low tax rate doesn't save many of its middle-class residents from a higher cost of living than paid by their Idaho Falls counterparts.

A higher schools tax levy and utility fee increases enacted over the past year and a half have negated the savings most Ammon homeowners would see on their yearly tax bills.

The Post Register analyzed significant taxes and fees assessed to residents of three geographic and taxing areas: Ammon; the section of eastern Idaho Falls that lies within Bonneville County Joint School District 93; and the bulk of Idaho Falls, which is within the boundaries of Idaho Falls School District 91.

That analysis found owners of smaller, cheaper homes spend far less if they live in the Idaho Falls-District 91 area.

That's because Idaho Falls residential water and sewer rates are about half of what people in Ammon pay -- a difference compounded by the fact that Idaho Falls Power customers pay 35 to 40 percent less for electricity than do Rocky Mountain Power customers.

Another major factor is the difference between tax levies charged by the area's two main school districts. Homeowners in District 93, with a taxable value of $100,000, pay almost $20 per month more than those in District 91.

But Ammon's low tax levy -- about one-third of the Idaho Falls levy -- begins to pay dividends for families owning homes with a taxable value of $250,000 or more.

At that value, Ammon residents pay nearly $600 less per year in taxes and fees than eastern Idaho Falls residents. The bills for Ammon residents and the rest of Idaho Falls would be virtually identical in that scenario.

Local real estate professionals said the difference between each area's taxes and fees aren't the driving force behind potential homebuyers' decisions.

These days, the bargains to be had in a rocky housing market can be just as important as the standard considerations of neighborhood, price and quality, said Juan Murdoch, an agent with Keller Williams Winstar Realty in Idaho Falls.

"In this market, people are less concerned with the fees -- the city fees -- and other things like that than they are with the house itself," Murdoch said. "It's really, 'Where are the places where I can get the best deal on the house?'"

While acknowledging that utility fees are a concern for business owners, Ammon City Council President Dana Kirkham said she's not worried that fee increases will discourage homeownership in the city. Money isn't the only reason people move to Ammon, she said.

"There's a quality of life here that people here are buying into, too," she said

Article from the Post Register in Idaho Falls