Utah had the nation’s fifth-highest rate of foreclosure activity in 2011, a new report shows, with 2.3 percent of its homes receiving a foreclosure-related filing during the year.

The state’s household rate of one in 43 is lower than only four states — Nevada (1 in 16), Arizona (1 in 24), California (1 in 31) and Georgia (1 in 37), reported the foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. Nationally, the rate is 1 in 69.

Utah’s filings last year were down about 32 percent from 2010, but RealtyTrac warned that the drop does not necessarily indicate that the housing market is getting any better. Many foreclosures have been delayed because of confusion over documentation and legal issues involved in the foreclosure process, and most other areas of the country had significant declines in filings for the same reasons.

"Foreclosures were in full delay mode in 2011, resulting in a dramatic drop in foreclosure activity for the year," RealtyTrac CEO Brandon Moore said.

Nationally, about 1.9 million homes entered the foreclosure process in 2011, the lowest level since 2007, when the recession began, RealtyTrac said.

In addition to confusion over documentation and a host of legal issues, there have also been problems with the way some lenders were handling foreclosures. Specifically, signing off on home foreclosures without first verifying documents — a practice referred to as "robo-signing." Many of the nation’s largest banks reacted by temporarily ceasing all foreclosures, refiling previously filed foreclosure cases and revisiting pending cases to prevent errors.

The listing firm anticipates that 2012’s foreclosure rate will be higher than last year’s, but will remain below the peak of 2010.

High unemployment, a sluggish housing market and falling home values remain major factors in homeowners falling behind on their mortgage payments. Many borrowers also have simply stopped paying their mortgage because they owe more on the mortgage than the home is worth.

RealtyTrac said that 2011’s foreclosure activity is 34 percent lower than 2010 and the lowest since 2007. The Great Recession began in December 2007 and officially ended in June 2009.

Rounding out the top 10 of states with the largest share of foreclosure filings were Michigan, with a household foreclosure rate of 1 in 45; Florida (1 in 49), Illinois (1 in 51), Colorado (1 in 56) and Idaho (1 in 56).