ST. PETERSBURG, FL—The headline says plenty, but there's more to the story in South Florida. After a decline in commercial real estate foreclosures in February, South Florida activity spiked in March, according to data provided by locally based Off-Market Radar. In total, 39 CRE foreclosures above $250,000 were filed in Miami-Dade and Broward counties in March and April. March saw the highest amount of activity with 24 filings, compared to 17 in February. The figure for April—the most recent month for which data was available—dropped again, with 15 reported foreclosures.

Although April's decline sounds positive on the surface, further analysis of the types of foreclosures filed may warrant concern among investors, according to the Radar analysis. Of the 17 February filings, the firm tracked only three above $2 million. Meanwhile, in March, seven foreclosures above $2 million were filed, and April saw seven more.

"We were most surprised by the growing percentage of foreclosures over $2 million within the total filings above $250,000," says Brian McCarthy, VP and co-founder of Radar. "This is surprising because many investors feel the opportunities in distressed assets have largely passed, yet what we may actually be seeing is that the smaller deals have been foreclosed or handed back, leaving only the bigger deals."