How to know if you're eligible for mortgage relief

Well, you really can't, not now anyway. It might be months before individual homeowners know if they'll benefit from the $26 billion settlement. (Check that - if your mortgage is held by Fannie or Freddie, you will not be affected by the deal.) Loan servicers haven't even worked out the specifics of eligibility. From the NYT:

The settlement provides help for those who owe more than their home is worth -- what's known as being underwater. For borrowers who are delinquent on their payments, or who are at risk of defaulting on the loan, help may include a reduction in their existing loan principal or other modifications. Borrowers who are up to date on payments may be able to refinance into a new loan at current interest rates, which remain at record lows.

Borrowers who lost their homes through foreclosure between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2011, will receive cash payments, expected to be about $2,000, The Times reported today. They will eventually receive forms in the mail instructing them what to do. A recent estimate from the settlement negotiations put the average aid for homeowners at $20,000, The Times also reported.

As I mentioned earlier, there's a website called nationalmortgagesettlement.com that lays out some of the basics - but not the details.