In an annual comparison, less homeowners across the nation had their homes repossessed in April, according to the foreclosure listing firm, RealtyTrac, Inc.

Lenders repossessed 69,532 homes last month, which shows a 5% decline from March and a 25% decline from April of last year. The declines are not a result of the lack of foreclosures in the real estate market, but are from the backlog of foreclosures that are causing delays in the system.

In New York along it could take an average of over two years for a home to go from the beginning stage of foreclosure to being actually repossessed by the bank. According to Rick Sharga, Senior VP at RealtyTrac, Inc., Its going to take between three to four years just to get those loans into foreclosure at our current pace, and that doesnt spell good news for the housing market.