Home foreclosures soared to an all-time high in the final three months of 2007 and probably will keep rising, evidence of homeowners' suffering and the economic danger from the meltdown.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said Thursday the proportion of all mortgages that slipped into foreclosure set a record, 0.83 percent, from October through December. The previous high, 0.78 percent, came in the July-through-September period.

''Clearly it's the worst it's been,'' the association's chief economist, Doug Duncan, said in an interview with The Associated Press.

At the same time, more homeowners fell behind on their monthly payments.

The delinquency rate -- when payments are at least 30 days past due -- for all mortgages climbed to 5.82 percent, the higher since 1985. The rate was 5.59 percent in the third quarter last year.

Homeowners with tarnished credit who have subprime adjustable-rate loans took the hardest hits. Foreclosures and late payments for these borrowers swelled to all-time highs, too, in the fourth quarter.

If this continues, maybe I'll be able to afford a house one day.