Q: About two months ago, you wrote that President Bush had signed a new law that would give tax breaks to property owners who install energy-efficient windows or make other energy-saving improvements. Have all the details been worked out yet? Did the law already take effect?

A: Although Bush signed the Energy Tax Act of 2005 in the late summer, the series of energy-saving tax credits it offers to homeowners and landlords don’t become effective until Jan. 1.

So, if you’re planning to make some energy-saving improvements to your house, waiting another month to buy the materials and begin the work could save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Starting Jan. 1, property owners who purchase and install energy-efficient windows can claim a federal tax credit equal to 10 percent of the project’s cost or $200, whichever is smaller.

Another 10 percent credit, up to a more generous limit of $500, will be available if you install energy-saving insulation, doors, skylights or one of those new-fangled metal roofs coated with heat-reducing pigments.

A credit of up to $300 will be offered to those who install certain types of electric or geothermal heat pumps. Qualifying water heaters and boilers that use propane, natural gas or even oil can generate a $150 credit, and the purchase of certain types of fans will result in a $50 credit.

If you install solar water-heating equipment, you’ll be eligible for a hefty tax credit of 30 percent of your costs or $2,000, whichever is smaller. But there’s a catch: The credit cannot be claimed if the equipment is used to heat a swimming pool or hot tub.

Remember that several states, local utility companies and manufacturers already offer similar credit or rebate programs of their own. So, you’ll save even more if you can piggyback those existing programs on top of the new federal tax credits that take effect on New Year’s Day.

Q.: I have just closed the purchase of my first home. Can I deduct the cost of my fire-insurance policy on my upcoming tax return, considering that the bank required me to buy the insurance before it would grant me the mortgage?

A.: No, the Internal Revenue Service does not allow homeowners to deduct the cost of their fire-insurance coverage. The fact that the bank required you to purchase a policy as a prerequisite for the home loan is irrelevant.

Landlords and other real estate investors are treated differently: The IRS lets them use the cost of the insurance on their rental property to offset some of the taxes that would otherwise be owed on their rental income. But unless you’re ready to lease your newly purchased home to someone else, I’m afraid your annual insurance premiums will remain nondeductible.

Q.: I lived with a woman for several years in the house that she owned. We were never married and she didn’t put me on the title to the home, but repeatedly promised that she would leave me the property when she died. She passed away in October without leaving a will, and her only daughter has since kicked me out and said that I won’t get the house or anything else. What can I do?

A.: Oral promises are virtually worthless when it comes to both real estate law and inheritance law. You were never put on the title to the woman’s home and you weren’t named in her will, so you don’t have a clear-cut right to the home despite her frequent promises.

Nonetheless, it might be wise to spend a few hundred dollars to consult an attorney who specializes in family law: You might be able to reach some kind of financial settlement with the daughter if, say, you can prove that her mother was essentially your “common-law” wife.

Your claim to the home also could be bolstered if you have canceled checks that show you helped meet the mortgage or property-tax payments or that you helped to pay for home improvements. Your chances of gaining full ownership of the property are slim, but the woman’s daughter might be willing to give you something if you can convince her that you deserve it – or if she’s simply concerned that you might challenge her in a potentially long and costly court battle over her mother’s estate.

– David W. Myers is a 20-year veteran of the newspaper and magazine business, having previously covered real estate for the Los Angeles Times and Investor’s Business Daily.