These Metros Are Considered the Most ‘At Risk’

Affordability pressures are mounting across the U.S., but some counties are more vulnerable to a potential downturn than others. Assessing housing affordability, unemployment, foreclosure activity, and more, property data provider ATTOM analyzed the most populous markets across the U.S. to determine which were considered most at risk during Q-2 2025.

The report shows that many of the highest risk counties were located in either California or Florida. Of the 50 highest risk markets, 14 were in California and seven were in Florida.

What counties are considered the most at-risk?

The five most at-risk counties include Charlotte County, Fla.; Humboldt County, Calif.; Shasta County, Calif; Butte County, Calif.; and Cumberland County, N.J.

The median home sales price and relative affordability differed greatly among these counties. However, all five had unemployment rates above June’s non-seasonally adjusted national average of 4.36%. Foreclosure activity was also high, with each county having at least one in every 766 homes in the county in foreclosure.

Financial pressures continue to mount in counties across the U.S.

In general, households across the U.S. are feeling the financial pressures caused by high home prices, mortgage rates, insurance costs, and more. 

In 19% of the 579 counties measured in the report, residents would have had to spend at least half of their annualized wages to purchase and maintain a home. In about 63% of the counties, residents would have had to spend at least a third of their annual wages on home expenses. 

Even so, there are still affordable pockets of the U.S. 

• 10 Affordable Metros for First-Time Homebuyers: First-time buyers can look to smaller or mid-size metros like Oklahoma City or Lubbock, Texas. 
• Affordable Home Listings Grow to Highest Level Since 2022: As of July 2025, there were about 439,000 homes considered affordable to a median-income household.