Dive Brief:

• The number of foreclosure filings dropped by 4% in February to their lowest level since July 2006, RealtyTrac reported on Thursday.

• At this rate, foreclosure activity could return to normal—to pre-recession levels—by the end of the year, RealtyTrac Vice President Daren Blomquist said in a press release. Activity could, in fact, “head … below historic norms given the skinny-jeans-tight lending standards over the past five years,” Blomquist said.

• Foreclosure activity includes default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions.

Dive Insight:

For homebuilders, fewer foreclosures in the areas where they build means they can sell new homes at higher prices. Foreclosures on the market are typically priced far below new products, which can be a bargaining chip for house hunters and a stumbling block for mortgage applicants who plan to pay a lot more for a home on the same block as others that cost far less.