Nowhere is there less sunshine in this picture than Florida. The survey found that from April to June, 12% of all Florida mortgages were in the foreclosure process and about 23% of all Florida mortgages-almost one in four-were late on payments or under threat of foreclosure.

In California, 10.8% of all mortgages were 90 days or more past due or in foreclosure. While the Golden State accounts for 13.3% of U.S. mortgages, it’s also the site of almost 20% of foreclosure starts from April to June. More worrisome is a trend emerging deeper in the numbers: Subprime loans given to the weakest borrowers are now a declining portion of delinquency and foreclosure rates, while prime loans, given to the most highly qualified borrowers, are a rising share. “The rise in prime delinquencies is a clear indication that employment is the driver of mortgage performance, with the worst performance coming in those areas that are combining job losses with large drops in home values like California and Florida,” Jay Brinkmann, the group’s chief economist, told McClatchy. “We won’t see a turnaround in delinquencies until we see improvements in employment, most likely the middle of next year.”

Forty-one states notched a rise in their foreclosure rate for prime fixed-rate mortgages in the second quarter, and prime fixed-rate loans accounted for one in three foreclosure starts. A year ago they were one in five starts. Prime fixed-rate loans are 65% of all U.S. mortgages outstanding, but more than 32% of foreclosure starts from April to June. They also constitute 27% of all U.S. loans now in foreclosure, up from 17%t in the comparable 2008 period. The rising delinquency and foreclosure rate for prime loans creates new problems for the Obama administration, which inherited a complicated housing situation.

The administration has unveiled a number of incentives for lenders and mortgage servicers, who collect mortgage payments on behalf of investors, to modify distressed mortgages by refinancing into lower rates or lowering monthly payments. The Making Home Affordable effort, however, is geared toward borrowers who have jobs and income. The increased rate of delinquency and foreclosure on prime fixed-rate loans reflects massive job losses occurring nationwide. Workers losing jobs won’t qualify for housing help.