Did You File For Homestead?

In Iowa you can receive a Real Estate tax credit if you file for homestead with your county assessor. Visit this link http://www.assess.co.polk.ia.us/web/info/homestead/internet.html for full details and directions on how to file. It was the easiest $130 per year that I have ever made.

If you have recently filed, you may remember the clerk at the assessor’s office asking you a series of questions. One of those questions is…”does the home have working smoke detectors on every level.”

When I purchased my first home and filed for homestead for the first time, I remember the lady asking me that question and thinking… Would I really tell you if they didn’t work? Of course I didn’t dare ask her that. I wanted my tax credit. And then I thought to myself, I have no idea if they work or not. I went home and checked the detectors and put new batteries in them. Now as I write this I question whether my smoke detectors work. I guess I should change the batteries since I am thinking about it.

Smoke is gray brown or black (can see it), it has a mild to strong odor (can smell it and yet I still have to rely on a detector to alert me when there is smoke. Not only that, but the State of Iowa tells me that I have to have a detector to qualify for a tax credit. Carbon Monoxide is Colorless (can’t see it) and Odorless (can’t smell it). Hmm. I don’t have to have a detector for this.?.

I recall several years ago a Des Moines couple was found dead in their Des Moines home. The cause was reported to be Carbon Monoxide poisoning. And most recently the incident involving workers being exposed to carbon monoxide from a malfunctioning furnace (I have a furnace) at a West Des Moines business. Carbon monoxide poisoning is not something I think about, but maybe I should. It must be time for me to replace my CO detector. I just visited the Kidde website at www.kiddeus.com and found that they have a lot of good information and options for a new detector.

I can’t help but wonder when the lady at the assessor’s office will ask…Do you have a working CO detector in your home?