The average American homeowner pays $1,290 in property taxes for every $100,000 in home value, according to report by real estate data firm Realty Trac. That means taxes on a $250,000 home average $3,225. But some homeowners pay a whole lot more. RealtyTrac’s report this week reveals effective property tax rates [Keep reading]
A massive telemarketing robocalling campaign pestered up to 12 to 15 million consumers every day with sales pitches for cruises disguised as political surveys, the Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday. The total number of calls involved in the campaign was “over a billion,” an agency spokesman said. The FTC and [Keep reading]
I spent a year studying English Common law in college, and here’s the only thing I really remember: Law exists to prevent mob rule. It only survives when it’s considered effective by the masses. If it’s not, people start taking the law into their own hands. This is the precipice [Keep reading]
My Restless Project stories about “sane circles” where people live touched a nerve — I still get lots of traffic and questions about the concept, so I’m going in for a closer look. In case you haven’t seen the earlier posts, I worked with RealityTrac to find the 100 zip codes [Keep reading]
A mobile phone virus that spreads by texting contacts in the victim’s phone book is hitting U.S. Android users, security firm AdaptiveMobile says. Dubbed Gazon, the worm tricks recipients into downloading an app by promising $200 in Amazon gift cards. Some 4,000 users have been infected — most in the U.S. [Keep reading]
Anyone who’s tried using the Internet to rent an apartment knows it’s a cesspool of scams and fake listings. But Kelly Kane found out this weekend that con artists are getting aggressive and vindictive. After she called out a would-be con artists on a fake ad, her cell phone number [Keep reading]
The Internet can be pretty weird, but “digital kidnapping” is about as weird as it gets. Internet “kidnappers” pilfer photos of other peoples’ kids, then share them acting as if the kidnappers are the parents. It’s called babyrp, short for baby roleplay. It can range from bizarre and arguably harmless [Keep reading]
I’ve received a couple of emails recently that made their way into my inbox (and away from my spam folder) that I think are troubling. They are well-drafted attacks designed to convince the recipient that their Gmail or YouTube account is about to be deleted unless he or she clicks [Keep reading]
As if on cue, the Internet exploded yesterday with a vigorous debate involving millions of people around the globe, celebrating the arrival of Net Neutrality. The debate was about the color of a dress. Thank goodness for Net Neutrality. So before I get to Net Neutrality, let me get this [Keep reading]
There’s been a lot of talk about raising the minimum wage lately, and it is good that workers and Walmart, TJ Maxx, and Marshall’s will soon have a little more money in their paychecks. Now, what about the rest of the country? Another comprehensive report issued by the Economic Policy [Keep reading]
Bob Sullivan