WASHINGTON (6/20/14)--Foreclosure filings dropped by 5.2% in May, the second straight month of decline and a new post-recession low, according to RealtyTrac numbers (Economy.com June 19).

Starts, lender repossessions and scheduled auctions--the three types of foreclosure activities--all fell in May, led by states that benefit from foreclosure processes that take less time to complete, according to Moody's analysts.

"The number of households becoming delinquent on their mortgages continues to decline as house prices trend higher and the labor market heals," said Brent Campbell, Moody's analyst (Economy.com). "Fewer homeowners find themselves underwater or unable to meet their monthly mortgage payments. Aside from the distressed properties that are still moving through the foreclosure process in the judicial states, foreclosure filings continue to broadly head lower."

Specifically, starts sank by 5.9%, foreclosure auctions fell 4.4% and bank repossessions slipped 5.6%.

Florida experienced the highest rate of foreclosures, Maryland placed second and Nevada came in third.

National foreclosure inventories, meanwhile, fell 2.8% in May, and sit 19% lower than levels seen last year at this time.