By Jason Alderman

Imagine renting a home on a beautiful beachfront from a trusted website, arriving to start your vacation and finding out you've been scammed?

This scenario reflects thousands of complaints placed with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) last year involving local vacation rentals. The FTC reports some victims lost money by wiring cash to thieves posing as property owners. Others lost money through fake websites replicating legitimate sites.

In today's economy in which home sharing has become more popular, how do travelers protect themselves from a range of potential online scams? Here are some suggestions:

Review rental contracts carefully. Check the address of the property you're interested in with on-the-ground resources like the local tourism office or the leading real estate brokerage in the community. While you're speaking with the tourism office, ask if there have been any specific complaints against the rental service you have consulted or if there might be more reliable and possibly more affordable rental resources in town.

Be wary of your source. Legitimate property owners may use free print or web classified ads to save money, but it's important to vet any free listing very carefully. Also, confirm with a live representative to ensure the site is legitimate.

Compare rental rates in the immediate area. A good deal might be tempting to seize immediately, but the FTC notes that severely below-market pricing for rentals and other vacation services in a community might indicate a scam. Crosscheck the pricing of home rentals and related services in the community before you make a reservation. Given the example above, don't rely on the Internet alone. Pick up the phone and talk directly to a representative.

Check transient license law in your destination city. Transient licenses regulate properties rented to guests for time periods generally 30 days or less. Call your destination city to get details on their transient license law and whether you can confirm the registration of the property you're considering. Ask the property owner for a copy of his or her transient license and see if the city will share the same license for your inspection to make sure they match. Also ask the city whether any specific complaints are available for the property you are considering.

Be wary of phishing scams. Be on the lookout for email and phone scammers who masquerade as employees of businesses you trust - they're after your bank or credit information. If you receive emails or phone calls demanding advance payments, contact the original website to confirm your reservation and payment policy. Recently, travel site Booking.com had to pay out compensation to more than 10,000 customers from the U.S., UK, France, Italy, Portugal and the UAE who were victims of a phishing scam.

Follow recommendations. Personal recommendations from friends and family can ensure a safe transaction. If you know someone who has visited a destination or rented property recently, ask which companies or individuals they would recommend.

Report fraud. Inform the local police at your vacation destination, the local Better Business Bureau and the FTC. When you get home, notify your local police or your state attorney general's consumer protection office to alert them to this particular cybercrime if you made the money transfer from your home state.

Bottom line: As online vacation rentals grow, so does cybercrime. Be cautious when booking arrangements online to protect your payments data.

Adding to the confusion of extensive tax laws is the fact that they change, says gold financial strategist William A. Storum.

In 2013, for example, new tax laws moved the highest federal income tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent. For 2014, if your taxable income topped $406,750 - or $457,600 if you're married and file a joint return - you are in that 39.6 percent.

"Whether you're in that percentile or not, inflation is an inevitable part of our future because the government is printing money it doesn't have, affecting every American," says Storum, author of "Going for the Gold" (www.goldandtax.com).

"Gold is the standard, and that's why it's a great investment for your portfolio assets - anywhere from 5 to 35 percent is a good range."

But gold investments may be highly taxed in the future, which is why you'll need a tax-planning strategy.

In trying to navigate stocks, mutual funds and various tax traps for gold, such a strategy likely requires a comprehensive and highly detailed plan, says Storum, who offers a few basic tips for gold coins and bars.

•  Trading with like-kind exchanges : As many real estate investors know, like-kind exchanges mean that an owner can exchange one investment property for another and thus avoid paying tax on a sale. Like-kind exchanges are also possible for gold investors. You can exchange bullion - coins or bars - for another form, and as long as equal value changes hands, no income tax will be due. Why trade? One reason may be to obtain smaller, more liquid gold items. A one-ounce gold bullion coin worth $1,400 or more may not be practical for purchases or gifts.

•  Privacy protection: Unlike gold stocks, funds and other similar securities investments, the purchase of gold bullion often is not reported to the IRS. No government agency is able to keep track. For the most part, investors in gold coins and bars, and other precious metals, have a great deal of privacy - if you know the rules and understand when forms must be filed. It's important to work with a dealer who is in compliance with reporting regulations. The IRS may scrutinize dealers and their customers if their compliance is in question.

•  Helping loved ones: Many people today are still not making what they used to, and finding a job right out of college is still challenging for many recent grads. Instead of giving cash to your child, consider giving an appreciated gold coin, which can be sold to pay the mortgage, pay property taxes, buy food, etc. In times of financial distress, your child may be in a low tax bracket - perhaps a 0 percent bracket - and thus would owe much less tax than you probably would pay if you sold the coin yourself. However, due to the so-called kiddie tax, this strategy won't work as well with children who are fulltime students younger than 24.

About William A. Storum

William A. Storum, JD, is a member of the California Bar Association (inactive) and a licensee (inactive) of the California Board of Accountancy. He has extensive experience in individual, corporate, real estate and partnership taxation and has represented clients in tax audits and other tax matters with the IRS. As an investor, Storum came to understand the need to own gold in order to preserve wealth from the government's reach. He wrote "Going for the Gold" (www.goldandtax.com) in an effort to clarify widespread confusion about investment in and taxation on gold. Storum graduated cum laude from the University of Santa Clara with a bachelor's degree in accounting with a minor in economics, and from the University of Santa Clara School of Law, cum laude.

Name: Rich Brauer
Position: Assistant Secretary - Illinois Department of Transportation

Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Rep. Rich Brauer to serve as the Assistant Secretary at the Illinois Department of Transportation. Brauer has served on transportation committees, and as a downstate resident, he will be a strong advocate for the region on transportation issues.

For the past 13 years, Brauer worked for the people of Illinois in the General Assembly as a state representative. His committee assignments included Transportation, Regulation, Roads; Transportation: Vehicles & Safety; Tourism & Conventions; and Appropriations, among others.

Brauer also spent much of his career in the agricultural industry as the owner of OASIS Farms, a farrow-to-finish operation. As the owner he oversaw the creation of new facilities and managed employees. He is a member of the Illinois Farm Bureau. Brauer is also the past president of the Illinois Pork Producers and served on the Board of Directors of the National Pork Producers.

Brauer attended Southern Illinois University and Western Illinois University.

Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

Name: Joann Fratianni-Atsaves
Position: Chairman - Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Joann Fratianni-Atsaves as the chairman of the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC). She has 34 years of experience in workers' compensation law and is currently an arbitrator on the IWCC.

Fratianni-Atsaves has worked for the IWCC for the past 27 years. She began her career as an arbitrator in 1987 and was appointed to be a commissioner from 1990 to 1993. She continued her work as an arbitrator after her term as a commissioner was complete. She currently hears workers' compensation matters by trial or settlement, and renders written decisions and approves settlement contracts.

Prior to her work for the IWCC, Fratianni-Atsaves worked in private practice at the law offices of Anthony V. Fanone where she handled insurance defense litigation for workers' compensation matters, often trying cases within the IWCC. She began her legal career at Osterkamp, Jackson & Hollywood.

Fratianni-Atsaves is a graduate of the University of Illinois and earned her law degree at Northern Illinois University.

Name: David Gore
Position: Commissioner - Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

Governor Bruce Rauner has reappointed David Gore to the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC). This will be Gore's fourth term as a commissioner and he has served on the board since 2006. He represents the employee community as a labor commissioner.

Gore has more than 20 years of experience as an attorney, previously serving as a partner at the law firm Gore & Gore. It specialized in workers' compensation cases. He also worked as an Assistant Attorney General for the Illinois Attorney General and a staff attorney with the Illinois Legislative Reference Bureau.

Gore also has experience working on workers' compensation matters as a staff representative for the United Steel Workers of America, AFL-CIO-CLC. He handled unfair labor practice charges and represented the union before the National Labor Relations Board.

Gore holds a bachelor's degree in marketing, a law degree and an M.B.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Name: Kevin Lamborn
Position: Commissioner - Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

Governor Bruce Rauner has reappointed Kevin Lamborn to a third term as a commissioner of the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC). He has served on the board since 2007 as a Business Member Appointee. In this position, he conducts hearings and issues written decisions on litigation appealed from arbitration.

Prior to his work on the IWCC, Lamborn was an associate attorney at Storino, Ramello & Durkin where he practiced municipal law. He represented local municipalities in civil actions, and also served as an Administrative Hearing officer in property impoundment and code violations.

Lamborn's legal career also included being a partner at McAauley & Lamborn. In that practice, Lamborn focused on a large range of the law including civil litigation, property transactions, work-related injury, and criminal defense, among others.

Lamborn began his career as an Assistant State's Attorney in Cook County. He worked his way up from traffic court to the felony trial division. He spent his final two years in the Special Prosecutions Bureau, where he investigated and tried cases involving public officials accused of misconduct.

Lamborn received his law degree from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago. He earned two bachelor's degrees in political science and criminal justice from Valparaiso University.

Name: Joshua Luskin
Position: Commissioner - Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Joshua Luskin to serve as a public member commissioner on the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission. Luskin is currently an arbitrator on the IWCC and has more than 15 years of law experience.

Prior to his work on the IWCC, Luskin was a partner at the law firm Nyhan, Bambrick, Kinzie & Lowry, where he specialized in workers' compensation law. Luskin also served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps, where he handled military prosecution and offered legal service to members of the military. He also worked in the Champaign County State's Attorney's office, and in the State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor's office.

Luskin graduated from Macalester College in 1994 with a degree in philosophy. He earned his law degree from the University of Michigan.

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