The year is off to a lousy start in the nation's second-largest gambling market.
One Atlantic City casino has been without an owner for more than a year, and its proposed sale looks shaky. Another may soon be foreclosed on by a bank that hasn't been paid since October.
Three others may have to file for bankruptcy if they can't get some breathing room from investors on more than a billion dollars worth of debt. And even the stronger casinos aren't doing that great.
The combined effects of the nationwide recession, a credit freeze, and cutthroat competition from out-of-state slots parlors are putting a beating on Atlantic City.
Las Vegas is feeling it, too: visitors and revenue are both way down from a year ago.
Copyright The Associated Press