Even as the market has continued to show slow but steady improvements, the major “elephant in the room” continues to be foreclosure and its effect on properties like Miami Beach homes.  Thankfully, last month was something of a change of pace, a change of pace that may or may not continue throughout the rest of 2010 but is certainly a bit of refreshing news.

During the month of May, foreclosure actions throughout the South Florida region nosedived by 49 percent when compared to May of 2009.  In Miami-Dade County alone, foreclosure filings plummeted by fifty percent, a reliable sign that more people are hanging onto their Miami Beach homes and lenders are doing at least something worthwhile with mortgage modifications and short sales.

It’s still important to keep in mind that while foreclosures may have dropped on a year to year basis, they’re still a problem.  Miami Beach homes, Coral Gables homes, some of these properties accounted for the 23 percent of default notices in Miami-Dade County during the month of May.  However the fact that numbers are going down may be a sign of good things to come.