Home foreclosures in 2007 continued to pile up at or above record levels, and those who work with troubled borrowers don't expect the trend to abate soon.

Foreclosure cases stayed nearly flat in Montgomery and Greene counties last year, while in Miami and Warren counties, they jumped ahead of 2006 numbers, according to clerks of court in those counties.

In Montgomery County, for example, foreclosure cases reached 5,063 compared to 5,076 cases in 2006, a record.

"But even at this rate, it is crippling to our efforts to address the problem and to the economic impact on the community as a whole," said Jim McCarthy, president and chief executive of the Miami Valley Fair Housing Center.

McCarthy expects factors such as an impending reset of adjustable-rate mortgages in March to keep foreclosures high at least through this year, he said. Foreclosure cases would have to drop by at least 40 percent before McCarthy would feel some progress was being made against the problem, he said.

McCarthy said the hike in foreclosures has created other problems for troubled borrowers looking to refinance. For example, the tumult in the market has led private-mortgage insurers to increase their rates by hundreds of dollars, making refinanced mortgages unaffordable to homeowners, he said. The HomeOwnership Center of Greater Dayton last year saw demand for its foreclosure-prevention services climb 275 percent to 468 homes compared to 170 homes in 2006, said Beth Deutscher, the organization's executive director.

"The numbers to us are just staggering when you think about how many people are still struggling and how many people need assistance," she said.