Regardless of home values, homeowners from all walks of life have felt the effects of increased foreclosure postings throughout 2009, according to a study released Thursday by Foreclosure Listing Service Inc.

The Addison-based listing service conducted a study of 19 counties that broke out net foreclosure postings by home price.

There are homebuyers in each community segment affected by the economy and foreclosure, said George Roddy Sr., president of the listing service.

“There’s not one segment that has been spared of the foreclosures,” Roddy said. “It’s happening to everybody. … More and more people are being affected.”

The study showed there were fewer net foreclosure postings in Denton County than Collin County, especially on homes valued at more than $500,000, he said.

“This is a good sign for Denton,” Roddy said. “It could mean Denton County didn’t experience the price escalations that Collin County had, like in Frisco, which means Denton did not have as far to fall.”

Nearly all net foreclosure postings for Denton County improved in 2009 compared with 2008, except for homes valued at less than $100,000 or homes purchased by first-time homebuyers, according to the report, which showed a 2 percent increase in activity in that segment.

That bucks the 19-county trend, which showed that net foreclosure postings were worse in all pricing categories, except for homes valued at less than $100,000, the data indicates.

The reason behind the relative success of Denton County’s foreclosure numbers, compared with other counties in the study, could be growth trends of the Dallas-Fort Worth area spreading northward, Roddy said.

But even compared with Williamson County, which lies just north of Austin, there are fewer foreclosure postings in Denton County, Roddy said.

“Obviously, Denton is in better shape based on the numbers,” he said.

The numbers for Denton County are impressive but unexpected, said Wes Pakebusch, production manager at PointBank Mortgage in Denton.

“I would’ve thought the trend would be opposite, from a lending perspective, but I’m glad to hear it,” Pakebusch said. “Maybe we’ve already cycled through [the recession] and the foreclosures have already happened, but that could be wishful thinking.”

“Jumbo loans,” or home loans for houses priced at more than $500,000, are difficult to obtain, he said, and home foreclosures are still being processed in Denton County.

According to the study, only 13 homes priced at more than $1 million were listed for foreclosure in 2009 — an improvement of 50 percent compared with 2008.

But that rate could be influenced by Denton County not having as many million-dollar homes as surrounding counties to lose to foreclosure, said Mitzi Harrison, home appraiser and co-owner of Harrison Appraisal Inc.

“We’ve already cycled through a lot of those million-[dollar] houses. … Most were builders’ homes, which the builders let go quickly when the recession hit,” Harrison said. “The foreclosures we’re seeing now are a result of job loss, and it’s very stressful.”

While the study shows there’s an increased number of foreclosure postings for homes priced at less than $100,000 in Denton County, those are the homes that are selling well, Harrison said.

“We’re busy right now with first-time homebuyers,” she said.

Denton County isn’t out of the woods yet, even with the positive news, Roddy said. There are properties still being funneled through loan modification and short sells by banks, he said.

“Denton was one of the few counties that saw a lessening of overall foreclosures. That’s a good thing,” he said. “But I think there are more in the pipeline and I still don’t see the numbers decreasing or increasing substantially, and they will likely remain at the status quo.”

CANDACE CARLISLE can be reached at 940-566-6889. Her e-mail address is ccarlisle@dentonrc.com .

Denton County net residential foreclosure posting activity, by home value

* The following counties were studied: Dallas, Tarrant, Collin, Denton, Rockwall, Grayson, Ellis, Kaufman, Johnson, Parker, McLennan, Bell, Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop, Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe.

SOURCE: Foreclosure Listings Service Inc.