Buying Foreclosures Worth the Trouble?

Foreclosure cycles come and go, but this one is different.

"This is the biggest foreclosure cycle we've ever seen since the Great Depression," says Rick Sharga, VP of marketing at RealtyTrac Inc., an online real estate marketplace that tracks foreclosures.

With so many foreclosure properties there for the taking -- 121% more in the second quarter of 2008 than in the same quarter of last year, according to RealtyTrac.com -- you might be tempted to take advantage of some bargain-basement real estate. But if you are new to the real estate market, or even just new to the foreclosure market, there are a few things you need to know before you open up your checkbook.

Know the Foreclosure Process

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