DFW foreclosure filings at 13-year low

DALLAS-FORT WORTH – DFW home foreclosure filings in 2014 were at the lowest level since 2001, according to data from Foreclosure Listing Service.

For the 12-month period, lenders scheduled more than 18,500 homes in the four-county area for forced sale. Posted foreclosures were down 34 percent from 2013 totals.

December’s foreclosure auctions in Dallas, Collin, Tarrant and Denton counties show 1,460 properties up for sale — a drop of 26 percent from December 2013.

Foreclosures in 2014 were less than a third of what they were during the worst of the housing sector shakeout. DFW home foreclosures hit an all-time high in 2010 when almost 64,000 homes were posted for forced sale.

December’s postings show the biggest declines from the same month in 2013 were in Denton County (down 33 percent) and Dallas County (down 29 percent).

Foreclosure filings for the month are 26 percent lower in Collin County and 19 percent less in Tarrant County than in December 2013.

Real estate analysts credit this year’s sharp decline in foreclosures to rising home values, which have made it easier for owners to sell or refinance problem properties.