Home foreclosures have shot up for the second year in a row - as concerns grow that owners are sitting on a 'negative equity timebomb.'

Figures from data firm ATTOM show that around 186,000 foreclosures have been filed in the first six months of the year. The trend is being driven by an uncertain housing market and soaring mortgage rates.

But a disparity remains across America, with some property landscapes faring much worse than others.

According to Attom's data, the city to see the biggest jump in foreclosures was Atlantic City in New Jersey where 6.8 houses in every 10,000 are facing repossession.

It was followed by Florence, South Carolina, New Haven, Connecticut and Baltimore, Maryland. 

Foreclosure occurs when an owner can no longer make their monthly mortgage payments and must forfeit the rights to their property as a result. 

Economics professor David Fiorenza, from Villanova University, explained Atlantic City's number one ranking was likely a hangover from the pandemic when its local economy was supported by generous stimulus packages. He used the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act [ARPA] of 2021 as an example.

Fiorenza told Realtor.com: 'You had the ARPA money propping up the finances of these local governments.

'They used it for infrastructure, like roads and highways, and they bought police cars and firetrucks. Those things are good, but now these governments are catching up.'

The economic health of Atlantic City also largely depends on its gaming and entertainment industries which were shut down for much of the pandemic.