In many ways, foreclosure can be described as a way out. It is the last resort of the bank and the final chapter in the American dream.

However, foreclosure is also a way to start — not only is it an effective tool, but it can also help prevent neighborhood blight from spreading and open the door to revitalization.

While everyone would like to avoid foreclosure, it provides cities with the legal tools necessary to acquire property that would otherwise be abandoned or vacant.

Problem is, there’s a stigma around foreclosure and lawmakers can be swayed into imposing restrictions that make it harder for municipalities to reclaim and use property that has been left behind to decay.

From a policy perspective, how can we create better legal tools to clear titles that aren’t dependent solely on the self interest of debt collectors? Mary Helen Petrus, a researcher from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, has some suggestions.

* Quiet title actions, in which governments go to court to “quiet”All claims on a property’s title.

* Laws to facilitate nuisance abatement through receivership (giving courts the power to assign repairs or improvements to an overseer of a vacant property).

* New rules making it easier for willing homeowners to forfeit their properties so that governments can take stewardship.

* Processes for tax foreclosures that don’t have to go through the courts.

However, foreclosure is not always the best option. The best course of action in viable neighborhoods is to improve the quality and affordability housing for those who live there. When properties are in serious decline and cannot be saved from falling into disrepair or becoming vacant, foreclosure may be the best option.

This is particularly true in American cities with high levels of unemployment or a declining population. These situations are where there aren’t enough homebuyers to buy all the available homes in a particular market. Foreclosure can help start the process of revitalizing the neighborhood. This topic is more detailed at www.foreclosure.org www.clevelandfed.org/pr/foreclosure.