UPDATE: Here's a critique of this report.

Most people at risk for foreclosure still are not getting help that might keep them in their homes, according to a new study.

The State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group, which consists of state attorneys general and banking regulators, first reported in February that, while loan servicers had increased modifications to mortgages, 70 percent of seriously delinquent loans were not in any sort of process to avoid foreclosure. That study was based on October 2007 data provided by 13 of the 20 largest subprime mortgage servicers.

The new follow-up report looks at data from October through January and finds that seven in 10 serious delinquent borrowers still are not on track for foreclosure prevention.

"Based on our analysis, the collective efforts of servicers and government officials to date have not translated into meaningful improvement in foreclosure prevention outcomes," it says. "In major respects, the subprime servicing data for January 2008 is nearly unchanged from October 2007."

Outcomes did not change during those four months despite a dramatic increase in public attention to the subprime mortgage crisis and increased outreach efforts by lenders and regulators, the study notes.

The study also reports that servicer loss-mitigation departments "are severely strained in managing current workload," with nearly two-thirds of mitigation efforts not completed in the month after they're started.

"Based on anecdotal reports of lost paperwork and busy call centers, we are concerned that servicers overall are not able to manage the sheer numbers of delinquent loans," the report says. "Seriously delinquent loans are 'stacking up' on the way to foreclosure."

On a positive note, the report says those receiving loss-mitigation assistance increasingly are getting changes to the terms of their loans, rather than being put on repayment plans.

The study calls for a substantial increase in loss-mitigation staffing and resources; more systematic, long-term solutions to deal with troubled loans efficiently, rather than working case by case; and slowing down the foreclosure process to allow for more work-outs.

"We still see a tremendous gap between the need for loan work-outs and the options in place today," it says.