The international attention on America’s subprime mortgage crisis has not translated into help for homeowners, advocates and experts say. Across the country, distressed borrowers are still losing their homes.

To address the immediate crisis, they say, the Obama administration must impose a moratorium on foreclosures, and then enact a plan to modify existing mortgages and make them affordable for struggling borrowers. But to avoid future crises, they say, the administration must move to prevent the predatory mortgage lending that created the foreclosures in the first place.

President-elect Barack Obama told a news conference Monday that he will nominate New York Federal Reserve Bank President Timothy F. Geithner as Treasury Secretary.

Geithner is the first Cabinet member to be named by Obama.

The president-elect also called on Congress to pass a strong stimulus bill, as well as help for the automobile industry.

"The economy is likely to get worse before it gets better," Obama told the news conference.

Check back soon for a bio on Timothy Geithner, who has been nominated for Treasury Secretary under the Obama administration.

KEY AGENCY TASKS: The Department of the Treasury is responsible for the "safety, soundness, and security" of the nation's financial systems, printing money, collecting taxes, and managing the government's debts and accounts. Key bureaus and offices include the Internal Revenue Service, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Office of Thrift Supervision, the Bureau of the Public Debt, and the Inspector General.