During the first six months of the year, major metropolitan areas in states like in Florida, California, and Nevada saw drastic hikes in their foreclosure rates. According to CNN Money, unemployment has replaced bad mortgages as the leading cause of these foreclosures.
RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed homes, said that California, Florida, Arizona and Nevada continue to lead the nation in the rate of foreclosures. Las Vegas was the worst-hit city.
But now unemployment has replaced toxic mortgages as the leading cause of foreclosures throughout the country, according to spokesman Rick Sharga.
"Las Vegas has seamlessly shifted from having a high level of foreclosures due to bad loans," said Sharga, "to defaults caused by a high level of unemployment." Some 14.5% of its work force was idle in June, up 2.1 points from last June.
Las Vegas had one filing for every 15 households in the metro area. The second highest rate was in Cape Coral/Fort Myers, Fla., with one for every 20 households. Two California cities, Modesto and Merced, tied for third with one filing for every 22 households.