Foreclosures continue to hurt housing market

Two new reports paint a challenging picture of the housing market during the coming year, with ongoing foreclosures likely to continue to weigh on the market.

The research firm RealtyTrac said Thursday that foreclosure activity during the first half of the year increased in three-quarters of the nation's metro areas, with Las Vegas posting the highest foreclosure rate.

Of the 206 U.S. metro areas with populations of 200,000 or more, the Twin Cities had the 79th-highest foreclosure rate with 15,230 filings -- a decline of 11.3 percent from the previous six months but a 4.1 percent increase from the first half of 2009. About one in every 88 homes received a foreclosure filing.

In Las Vegas, one in 15 homes received a filing -- more than five times the national average.

Also on Thursday, a new Fiserv Case-Shiller home price report said that home prices in Minneapolis during the first quarter of the year rose 6.6 percent. But the report projected a 4.6 percent drop over the next 12 months.

Nationwide, prices are expected to fall 4.9 percent, with double-digit drops expected in Nevada and Arizona.