Areas in California like Merced, Stockton, Modesto and Vallejo-Fairfield that continue to be ranked in the top 10 for foreclosure activity nationwide saw declines which can be attributed to workout programs that have become increasingly utilized.

But at the same time, the data shows new cities are popping up with bigger problems than ever before. This from a Reuters article:

Boise City-Nampa, Idaho, and Provo-Orem and Salt Lake City in Utah had the biggest year-over-year increases in foreclosure rates among the top 50 areas.

If workout programs are having a positive effect on the harder hit areas of the past, why are other cities seeing such dramatic increases? In RealtyTrac’s report, chief executive James J. Saccacio explained the trends:

Rising unemployment and a new variety of mortgage resets continue to gradually shift the nation’s foreclosure epicenters in the third quarter away from the hot spots of the last two years and toward some metro areas that had avoided the brunt of the first foreclosure wave.

Most experts continue to agree that the end is still far off and foreclosures will continue to hamper the housing market’s ability to rebound.