Foreclosure starts nationwide were at an 18-year low in August, another sign of the housing market’s recovery and a generally healthy economy.

That’s according to Black Knight’s “First Look” report for August, which found there were 36,200 starts during the month, down 23 percent year over year and a 7.65 percent month-over-month decline. It was the fewest foreclosure starts since December 2000.

Petitions to foreclose – the first step in the foreclosure process in Massachusetts – were low for the month of August, but not a record low. There were 383 petitions to foreclose on single-family homes filed in the state last month, down 25 percent from the 515 filed in August 2018, according to data from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

There were 497 petitions filed for all residential property types, down 38 percent from the same month last year. However, there were 382 starts filed for all residential property types in July 2019.

The August figures are the lowest for the month since 2013, when there were 285 petitions to foreclose on single-family homes and 436 for all residential property types.