Multifamily foreclosures are down 25%. Defaults are down almost 2% from the same time last year. How so? It's new job creation and transplanted Texans (we know, they got here as soon as they could).

The Cantrell Co partner Todd Franks says the firm tracks all multifamily CMBS loans in Texas and Oklahoma, with the stars on the map representing the 81 multifamily properties in the DFW area that are 30-, 60- and more than 90-days delinquent, posted for foreclosure or taken back as REO. Last year, the number was 108. There are 660 multifamily properties secured by CMBS debt in the four-county DFW area (Dallas, Tarrant, Denton, and Collin), down15.6% from last year when the number was at 782.

Todd, with colleague Sam Pettigrew, attributes the improvement to a healthier economy and overall market fundamentals. There were65,000 jobs created in DFW in the past 12 months ending Feb. 28 and Texas has seen nearly 1.4M people relocate here between 2007 and 2010. According to ALN, the DFW area absorbed almost 25,000 units in 2010 while only adding 4,100 to the inventory. Though the inventory of distressed multifamily assets has decreased, the number of listings have grown at The Cantrell Co. Todd and Sam recently placed four distressed multifamily properties for sale, closed three REO assets, and are under contract with another eightthat are either lender owned or in receivership. Whew, we're thinking these guys deserve a Kit Kat or something.