No Place Like Home

In the beleaguered housing market, "less bad" is the new good.

The latest report on foreclosures isn't exactly good news, but it's better than it has been in the recent past. And that's good, right?

A new report shows that the rate of foreclosures declined 2 percent in February, to 508,324. The report from RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosed properties, said it was the second straight monthly decline, although the number of foreclosures was 6 percent higher than it was during February 2009. The report covers default notices, scheduled foreclosures, and bank repossessions among 90 percent of the U.S. population, according to RealtyTrac, which is based in Irvine, California.

There was even good news—no, make that less-bad news—from Nevada, which continues to have the highest foreclosure rate in the nation for the 38th month in a row. The state's foreclosure rate dropped 7 percent from January and 30 percent from February 2009. Yet one in 102 homes in Nevada received a foreclosure filing in February, which is four times the national average.

The absolute number of foreclosures remained highly concentrated in six states. California, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, Arizona, and Texas accounted for 60 percent of the total fillings for the month.

The leveling off in the foreclosure rate is one of several signs of better health in the housing market. Some experts believe that the market for home equity loans, which collapsed along with the housing bubble, is poised for modest growth as well. About $36 billion in new home equity loans will be issued during the next 12 months, according to a forecast from Moody's Economy.com. Loan balances are expected to rise 4.2 percent to $903.5 billion.

Existing home sales fell in January, but are higher than they were a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. In other words, the news is mixed. And that isn't so bad.