Like a bad opera, the housing crisis that began six years ago is packed with too many characters and plot twists and has lasted far too long. But 2012 gave us several hints that the denouement is gradually approaching, the most important of which was April’s mortgage-fraud settlement between state attorneys general and some of the nation’s largest financial institutions. The deal penalized mortgage services to the tune of $25 billion for foreclosing on homeowners using fraudulent documentation and for the practice of robo-signing, or getting one employee to sign thousands of foreclosure documents without verifying the information therein. The settlement resulted in $2,000 checks for affected homeowners as well as programs to help underwater mortgage payers stay in their homes. Critics accused the deal of being too easy on the banks, but so far the settlement has been one of the few punitive actions taken by the government against financial institutions for their role in the housing bubble and its aftermath.