Bank settllelment deal subject to a judge's approval

[mfcorey1]

Under the deal:

- Roughly $1.5 billion for direct payouts, in the form of $2,000 checks, for about 750,000 Americans who were unfairly or improperly foreclosed upon; another $3.5 billion will go directly to states.

- At least $10 billion for reducing mortgage amounts.

- Up to $7 billion for other state homeowner programs.

- At least $3 billion for refinancing loans for homeowners who are current on their mortgage payments but who are underwater.

The deal is subject to final approval by a federal jud