April ’15 Market Stats
Radon – what is it, how serious, and what can I do?
Disclaimer: Please perform your own research in regards to the health risks of radon, and the benefits of radon mitigation systems.
Radon is a radioactive odorless gas. It is caused by the breakdown of uranium in the Earth’s soil underground, and permeates into homes, offices – anywhere it can be contained. The greatest risk for exposure is in the home, where most people spend the majority of their time. Because radon is gaseous, it is easily inhaled, therefore the biggest health risk associated with the gas is lung cancer. That risk has been known to be amplified with those who smoke. Radon can also be present in water. The greatest risk associated is the release of radon as water temperature increases, such as during your shower. Mosts tests show that the risk of lung cancer due to the gas being inhaled is far greater than health risks during consumption. According to the EPA, radon causes more deaths than drunk driving per year.
Now that I have panicked my readers – radon has been known to be found all over the United States, not just locally. Fortunately, it can be tested for, and mitigated with relative ease. Radon is measured in picocuries per liter, or pCi/L. Radon can be tested with both short-term and long-term testing. Radon levels fluctuate with the season, the EPA recommends testing both short and long term, and considers 4 pCi/L or lower “safe(er) levels”. Test kits can be purchased from your local building inspector, or online. Radon monitors are also available.
Now, the “what can I do part” You can start by being proactive, and ventilating your home as much as possible, within reason. Keep in mind that the air we breathe outside can even have a small amount of radon. If your home is on a crawl space, keep the vents open when you can to create a cross ventilation below the living area of your home. This alone can dramatically decrease radon levels. Obviously, not all homes are constructed with a crawl space. Basements can be notorious for higher radon levels, as well as homes with a slab on grade type construction. Second, look into a radon mitigation system. There are several types of mitigation systems. All of them can be very effective, and dramatically, (almost entirely) mitigate the gas. Usually, it’s a form of depressurization or suction – in other words a fan that creates a draw beneath the slab or floor system of your home that pumps the gas outside. Homes recently constructed will likely even have built-in radon resistant features, where a fan can be added to further reduce the levels the radon in your home. Either way, a radon mitigation system can be added to any home, whether or not pre-existing features exist.
One time use tests can be as little as $20.00, and mitigation systems can range from 500 to $3000.00 depending on the application. Feel free to email me for more information!
Teton County, Idaho Property Tax
TETON COUNTY, IDAHO
Trying to figure out how property tax and levies are created can be daunting, even for a real estate agent! Property tax can be defined as the primary source of revenue for the local governments that serve and protect the community, such as school districts, ambulance, fire, and so on.
First, we should understand how your property values are assessed. Basically, the assessor’s office identifies and values all the taxable property in the county. They use recent sales data, estimated construction costs, and other data to estimate the value of each property. All valuations are monitored by the state tax commission to ensure accuracy and compliance with state laws. The letters that you receive asking about sale data after you purchase a property are used to help value your property. Note*** Idaho is a nondisclosure state, and you are not required to submit this document. Weigh the pros and cons of giving this information to the County.
Next, we need to understand how the levy (imposed tax) is calculated. This job is handled by the County Clerk. The simplest answer is the rate is calculated by dividing the amount of property tax needed by the total taxable value of all the properties. The long answer is not quite that simple, but it uses the same method. This method is used by 14 districts within the county that create their own budget, and calculate a tax rate for that specific district. District 1, the City of Driggs has a slightly different tax rate and budget than District 2, in the City of Victor. So, each district divides their budget by the taxable value of the properties within that district to come up with the tax rate for that district.
Now that we have the tax rate for your district, and your assessed value, all each district has to do is multiply the value of your property by the tax rate to come up with your property tax amount. So, this is the final step before you receive your bill. It’s important to understand that each budget is created at the end of the year, and therefore your taxes are assessed for the prior year. The taxes are paid in two halves for each year. The first half of each year becomes due December 20th and the second half of that year is due the following year on June 20th. State law limits budget increases as a whole (not on an individual basis) to 3%.
Understanding that this is a very brief description of how the system works, coming from someone who does not work for the County with only a limited understanding, there are a few other points to be made here. One question you might ask yourself is, how can I reduce the amount I pay in property taxes? There are a few things to keep your eye on. First, if the property is your primary residence, make sure that you have applied for the homeowners exemption. This must be filed with the assessor’s office by April 15th. Second, always review your annual assessment notice, and call the assessor’s office if things seem out of line. Idaho Code states that any claim for tax reduction shall be filed with the assessor’s office between January 1st and April 15th of each year.
Water rights, how do they work?
Water rights are an important part of any real property with rights in Idaho. They are not insured by a standard title insurance policy, so it’s important that you have an understanding of your property’s rights. I am not going to focus too much on how to obtain a water right, (it’s a complex process) but rather a general scope of the types, and uses for these rights. To start, I will describe what a water right is.
A water right is basically a “right” to divert water for a beneficial use, such as irrigation, domestic, or commercial use. The diversion is what is used to obtain the water, in the form of a head gate and ditch, well, irrigation pump, etc.
Next, the types of water rights, there are 2 main types – Surface rights, and Ground rights. Surface rights are the rights we see, such as ditches, diversions from creeks, runoffs, springs, and so on. Irrigation ditches carry water for the benefit of the rights owner. Ground water rights are not naturally present at the surface of the ground. Ground rights include drilled wells. Irrigation wells are currently under a moratorium in some areas of the state, in those areas, only rights dating back prior to the moratorium exist. This is because the ground rights users were using the available water for the end users with senior rights. If you do not have Ground rights, however, you can still have a well such as a domestic or culinary well, limited to 13,000 gallons per day and .5 acres of yard irrigation. Other noteworthy “types” would be water you receive from an irrigation district or utility company, and stock water use, Cattle/stock owners are not restricted on use of existing streams on their land for stock water purposes. You should also know that Idaho does not recognize riparian rights, in which the owner of and has the right to make reasonable use of the water under or on their land. Waters in Idaho are considered public waters.
Dates, appropriation, and how rights are established are an important aspect of the above rights. Idaho’s rights to use water when there is a shortage is determined by priority dates, or when the right was established. Prior to 1971, a user could simply divert surface water, and apply it to a beneficial use. These rights must have documentation of when they were first used, which determines their priority date. Ground water could be obtained the same way prior to 1963. These rights are called “beneficial” or “historic” use rights. These rights have now been recorded with the Idaho Department of Water Resources, or IDWR. Rights are now established by an application/permit/license procedure with the IDWR, and that process is contingent on available water and approval.
You can research whether or not you own water rights (water rights in Idaho are privately owned and are considered real property rights, much like property rights in land) with the IDWR, and their interactive website. There are 4 regional offices (N, E, S & Western) all of Teton County is in the Eastern Regional Office. Remember that if you receive your water from an irrigation district or utility, that right will be owned by, and listed under that “company” or owner.
***Source: Idaho Department of Water Resources
