North Texas home foreclosures are continuing to retreat from the record highs set last year.

Foreclosure filings for September are down 19 percent from a year ago, the seventh month in a row that foreclosure postings in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have fallen year-over-year.

Foreclosure filings in the D-FW area have now been lower in 10 of the last 12 months, according to the latest data from Foreclosure Listing Service.

For next month’s foreclosure auctions, lenders have scheduled 4,774 homes for forced sale. So far in 2011, home foreclosure filings are down 12 percent from the same period last year.

“For the first time in 11 years, year-to-date residential postings declined,” said George Roddy, president of the Addison-based foreclosure tracking firm.

Some of the declines may be due to delays by lenders in processing the foreclosures, Roddy said.

Late loan payment rates, while improved from a year ago, remain high.

With September’s foreclosure sales filings, the biggest decline is in Denton County, where they are down 28 percent. Foreclosure postings were 19 percent lower in Dallas County.

So far in 2011, 42,380 homes in the four-county area have been threatened with foreclosure. That’s down from more than 48,000 foreclosure filings at the same time last year.

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