Foreclosures Spread To Suburbs

Kansas City, MO – The number of foreclosures in the area continues to mount, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Officials are predicting that the problem will get worse before it gets better.

Many of the first wave of foreclosures were due to subprime loans, and tended to be concentrated in low-income areas. Kelly Edmiston is a senior economist with the Kansas City Fed. He says that although Kansas City's overall foreclosure rate is lower than some other parts of the country, there are some troubling hot spots.

EDMISTON: There are neighborhoods in KC-MO and KCK where foreclosure rates are considerably higher than they are in other metropolitan areas as a whole - so they are as severe as they are in other areas of the country.

Edmiston says the new wave of local foreclosures is being driven by plummeting home values and people losing their jobs. These foreclosures are affecting other parts of the metro: particularly central Lee's Summit, north of Independence, and parts of Johnson County. The Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank is partnering with mortgage lenders and community groups to offer free advice to homeowners in danger of foreclosure at Kansas City's convention center tomorrow.