Some Californians Able to Avoid Foreclosure in May

The number of foreclosures seen in the state in May declined from numbers seen in April and during the fifth month of last year.

People in California may have been better able to avoid foreclosure in May, according to a recent report from ForeclosureRadar.

The company said that default notices on home loans in the state declined 17.25 percent when compared to April and were also 43.34 percent lower when compared to May 2009. Trustee sale notices fell 11.88 percent from April, ForeclosureRadar said.

"Given the staggering number of delinquent home loans, foreclosure activity should be rising not falling as we found again this month," ForeclosureRader CEO and founder Sean O'Toole said.

O'Toole said the state has seen many homeowners abandon their houses rather than trying to modify their mortgage or go through with a short sale.

One reason this may happen is because the actual value of a property is much lower than what is owed on a home loan. Some consumers would rather default than pay high rates on these underwater properties.