The number of Chicago-area homeowners who received permanent loan modifications under the federal government’s program rose 17 percent in May, but there continues to be a dramatic slowdown in the ability of local consumers to qualify for trial payment plans.

Treasury Department officials said 17,428 area homeowners have received a permanent modification since the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program that was introduced last year, compared with 14,890 homeowners in April. At the same time, the number of homeowners in active trial modifications slumped by more than 26 percent in May, to 23,640.

Nationally, the report shows that for the eight largest servicers, 48.9 percent of homeowners who were unable to qualify for a permanent modification found an alternative to foreclosure. In fact, among the largest servicers, only 7 percent of cancelled trial modifications ended up in foreclosure.

“The bulk of the people in that situation are either receiving an alternative modification or they’ve been able to become current or the action is still pending,” said Assistant Treasury Secretary Herb Allison.

The data was released as part of a “monthly housing scorecard” introduced Monday by the Obama administration as it tries to show the overall condition of the housing market, The scorecard shows the results of its own and servicers’ individual efforts to slow the tide of foreclosures and separate actions by the administration to maintain home affordability.

The report “helps the public connect the dots”  and shows that the industry is in significantly better shape than anyone would have thought 1 1/2 years ago, said Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, in a conference call with reporters Monday morning.

However the scorecard, which culls information from numerous sources tracking the housing market, also shows a housing industry that remains extremely challenged, at best. According to the data, almost 11.3 million mortgages remain underwater on their mortgages, meaning more is owed on the loans than they homes are worth. The report also showed increasing delinquency rates of prime, subprime and Federal Housing Administration loans.