BOSTON — A report prepared by the State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group released yesterday found that current mortgage industry measures to keep homeowners out of foreclosure are barely keeping pace with the rising rate of homeowners in trouble.

The State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group, which was formed last summer, is a joint initiative of 37 states Attorneys General and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.The group's objective is to work with subprime mortgage loan servicers to reduce the number of foreclosure by encouraging loan modifications and other sustainable long-term solutions. The report found that only one in three borrowers getting help finalized a workout within 45-days.

The report includes data on loss mitigation efforts by 13 major residential mortgage servicers. Group member Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said, "In most cases, and particularly where mortgage loans contain payment terms that were not structured to be sustainable in a real estate downturn, loan modification and other loss mitigation should be done much more actively. The number of borrowers in loss mitigation has increased but those gains have been matched by an increasing level of delinquent loans."