Foreclosure filings fell 23 percent nationally in 2013’s first quarter, but the situation in many local markets offered a more nuanced portrait.

Foreclosure filings nationwide declined in RealtyTrac’s latest U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, though unsurprisingly, the situation was a bit more complicated on the local level.

Surveying the first quarter of 2013, RealtyTrac’s report found that foreclosure filings, which covers default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, fell 12 percent quarterly and 23 percent yearly; with 442,117 filings, the first quarter had the lowest foreclosure filings since 2007.

But again, the scenario was a bit more nuanced on the local level. Foreclosure starts were up from February to March in 23 states, and in 12 states, starts were up annually. In New York and Maryland, for instance, starts were up 200 percent and 193 percent, respectively, from the year before.

Foreclosures on the Home Front

Here in Miami, the foreclosure situation has been a curious one. Iliana Abella, the broker/owner of Greater Miami Investments and a MBF member who has worked for years with foreclosures, said that her personal inventory of foreclosure properties has been scant the last couple months. Even though she had received messages from industry professionals that more units would be hitting the market, and even though Miami remained the No. 1 city in the nation for foreclosure filings in March, she’s not seeing any on the marketplace.

“I’m not sure what’s going on,” she said. “It’s kind of weird.”

Interested in how Miami’s foreclosure rate compares with the rest of the nation? See our infographic below for some perspective.