The number of foreclosed homes is likely to increase further as more households in major U.S. cities received foreclosure warnings in the first six months of the year.

Data released by RealtyTrac Inc. showed that of 206 metropolitan areas with a minimum population of 200,000, 154, or almost 75%, reported an annual increase in foreclosure activity. The report also showed that the threat of foreclosure has spread beyond the cities that were mostly affected by the burst of the housing bubble, indicating that the country’s problem with lender-repossessed homes is worsening further.

The state of Florida led the increase in foreclosure activity, accounting for nine of the top 20 metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rates. According to the firm, the Sunshine State’s Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompani Beach metro area received the most number of foreclosure-related warnings during the first half of 2010.

RealtyTrac senior vice president Rick Sharga blamed the country’s high unemployment rate for the growing number of foreclosed homes. “The face of foreclosure is driven much more now by unemployment than in the past, and it’s moving out from the places where we’ve been focusing on in the last few years. The combination of a weak job market and a weak housing market is making it difficult in some of these areas,” he said.

Sharga added that with the growing number of repossessed homes, it is quite unlikely that the housing market will see a “meaningful and sustainable” increase in home prices over the next three years.

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