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THE jobless rate in parts of Sydney has almost doubled in a year and in some areas up to one in 16 homeowners are defaulting on their mortgages.
Of the top 20 postcodes for mortgages that are more than a month in arrears, 19 are in NSW, data obtained by The Daily Telegraph reveals.
See which areas are in arrears.
The revelation has prompted an unprecedented study of 200 defaulters by the University of Western Sydney - funded by the Reserve Bank - to understand how they are slipping through the cracks.
The move comes as the Federal Government announced a crackdown on unscrupulous lenders.
The laws will make it illegal for lenders to extend credit to a consumer who is unsuitable or who cannot meet the repayments.
An analysis by the UWS's Urban Research Centre has found that areas along the M4, Windsor Rd and Canterbury Rd corridors, as well as the Central Coast, are bearing the brunt of the looming recession. The hardest hit is the area around Fairfield and Liverpool, where latest figures show the unemployment rate has jumped to 10.5 per cent - its highest level since 2001.
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Michelle of Sydney The shock figure is up from 5.9 per cent this time last year. The Richmond-Tweed area is also just into double figures.
Are you in mortgage stress? Find out here.
Urban Research Centre director Phillip O'Neill said it was cause for concern that regional centres would struggle to get employment because they had been "starved of government infrastructure spending".
The centre is now undertaking a survey into the causes of mortgage stress and is asking those suffering to register via its website.
The top area in NSW for mortgage defaulting was Nelson Bay, followed by Raymond Terrace, Katoomba, Greenacre, Guildford, Fairfield, Cessnock and St Marys.