Foreclosures Wane in Bay State as Economy Mends: Report

Foreclosure petitions fell by nearly 30 percent last month in Massachusetts, reaching their lowest level this year as jobs crawl back to life and the economy at large continues to mend.

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""The Warren Group"":http://www.thewarrengroup.com/, publisher of _Banker & Tradesman_, recorded some 1,254 petitions in June, a decline by as much as 29.5 percent from May.

In June the petitions rose by almost 27 percent, up from 990 since last year. According to the group, foreclosure petitions jumped 68.6 percent from 5,415 from January through June.

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""It's pretty significant to see foreclosure petitions drop by almost 30 percent from just a month ago,"" ""Timothy Warren Jr."":http://www.thewarrengroup.com/about-us/management/, CEO of The Warren Group, said in a statement.

""I believe that an improving economy, more jobs and an active real estate market are having an impact and giving us a moderating trend in foreclosures,"" he added.

Foreclosure deeds declined 24 percent to 715 in June, down from 936 deeds from the same month last
year â€" a first for deeds with year-over-year declines since September 2011.

Even so, second-quarter foreclosure activity went up statewide, according to the group, with foreclosure petitions up 66 percent to 4,783. Completed foreclosures inched up 4 percent to 2,190 over the same second quarter.

Advertised auction notices fell last month, with 1,109 auction announcements in June â€" a nearly 50
percent decline from 2,205 from the year before.

Year-to-date auction notices fell by the same token, dropping 7 percent to 8,132 in 2011.