Some states tired of waiting for the federal government to stem the rising tide of home foreclosures have tackled the problem themselves.

Nine states have spent more than $450 million to provide emergency or short-term loans to subprime homeowners and others, USA Today reports.

As North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley, a Democrat, said: "We have all been looking to the federal government to step in and do something about these foreclosures, and they have done nothing. So we decided we would do it on the state level."

Connecticut is helping families refinance into 30-year fixed rate loans by assisting them with their payments for up to five years. Maryland has spent $100 million helping homeowners with adjustable-rate or interest-only mortgages to obtain a 40-year fixed-rate loan.

Ohio is helping people with adjustable-rate mortgages to refinance into fixed-rate loans. Part of the deal is that applicants must be counseled on loan financing.

Some 20 states have acted to prevent foreclosures. They have done so for political reasons but also because they will lose tax revenue from foreclosures and dropping home values.

Yet 40 million more homes are projected to see their values fall by as much as $356 billion in the next two years, the Pew Charitable Trusts found.

The scope of such estimates raises doubts that the states' measures will make a big difference overall.