The number of foreclosures on Long Island is expected to rise as unemployment grows.

The latest unemployment figures released by the Department of Labor show employers cut 533,000 jobs in November. Those layoffs pushed unemployment to 6.7 percent, the biggest monthly decline in 34 years.

Michael Watt, of the Long Island Builders Institute, says a healthy housing market is the engine that drives the local economy. Watt also says the construction industry and others are facing their darkest hour.

"It's not just the construction industry, who [is] building all the houses, it's all the subcontractors," he says. "You move into a house you're going to buy all new furniture, all new appliances, so that keeps the retail segment going."

What options do you have if you?re behind on mortgage payments?