A total of 2 percent of all homes with a mortgage in Massachusetts were in the foreclosure inventory as of March, better than the nation’s 3.4 percent average, according to a new report from California data firm CoreLogic.

Nationally, 1.4 million homes were in the foreclosure inventory as of March. The number of loans in the foreclosure inventory decreased 6 percent in March compared with March 2011, a decline of 100,000 properties.

The foreclosure inventory is the stock of homes in the foreclosure process. A property moves into the foreclosure inventory when the mortgage servicer places the property into the foreclosure process after serious delinquency is reached, and remains there until the foreclosure is completed, CoreLogic said. The foreclosure inventory is measured only against homes with an outstanding mortgage, rather than against all homes. Nationwide, roughly one-third of homeowners own their homes outright.

"The overall delinquency level was unchanged in March, remaining at its lowest point since July 2009," CoreLogic Chief Economist Mark Fleming said in a statement. "Non-judicial foreclosure markets like Nevada, Arizona and California are experiencing significant improvements in their shares of delinquent borrowers. Some judicial foreclosure states are also improving, like Florida, but not to the extent of non-judicial markets."

The share of borrowers nationally that were 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments, classified as seriously delinquent, fell to 7 percent in March. In the Bay State, 5.6 percent of borrowers were 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments.

The five states with the highest foreclosure rates were: Florida (12.1 percent), New Jersey (6.6 percent), Illinois (5.4 percent), Nevada (4.9 percent) and New York (4.9 percent).

The five states with the lowest foreclosure inventory were: Wyoming (0.7 percent), Alaska (0.8 percent), North Dakota (0.8 percent), Nebraska (1.1 percent) and South Dakota (1.4 percent).