Foreclosures in Florida dropped by 12 percent from March to April, according to ForeclosureDataOnline.com. Since the fourth quarter of last year, the state’s foreclosure activity is down 47 percent.

The site attributes this slowdown to the recent robo-signing foreclosure documentation problems exposed last fall.

As a result, several major lenders re-evaluated their foreclosure procedures and implemented temporary foreclosure moratoriums, slowing the process. These delays

have reduced the number of U.S. homes taken back by banks in the first three months of this year.

The holdup has been compounded by court delays where foreclosures require approval by a judge in states such as Florida.

ForeclosureDataOnline.com says what would usually take about four months to process had been taking almost 17 months from the time a property receives its initial notice of default until it is put up for auction.

However, March data suggest foreclosure activity may soon rise again. ForeclosureDataOnline.com found about 1.8 million homes delinquent or in foreclosure to add to the 3.5 million existing homes already on the market.

Foreclosure activity will increase again as banks gradually work their way through the backlog of thousands of foreclosures, the site predicts.

Last month, ForeclosureDataOnline.com says the largest drop in foreclosure activity among Florida’s major cities was seen in Saint Petersburg, down more than 23 percent.

Jacksonville was the only major city in the state to record an increase in foreclosures in March, up just over 1 percent.