Number Of Mass. Homes Facing Foreclosure On The Decline

The number of homes facing foreclosure in Massachusetts is on the decline, but experts say the news is not necessarily good.

New figures from The Warren Group show foreclosure petitions in September dropped 6 percent from the year before.

But Vincent Valvo, editor-in-chief of Banker & Tradesman, calls those numbers misleading.

"Once you're in that process, the likelihood that you're going to lose your property is much greater than it used to be, because the number of deeds where lenders are actually taking these properties is going up dramatically," Valvo said.

Valvo says he expects 2010 to post one of the highest foreclosure rates on record.