But if preforeclosure negotiations with disenfranchised homeowners and courthouse bidding wars don't appeal to you, there is another way to cash in on foreclosures. In a down market, you can wait for the bank to repossess the house, make the necessary repairs, and put it up for sale. "Nowadays, it's smarter for a lot of buyers to wait for the bank to repossess the house," says Rick Sharga, vice president of marketing for RealtyTrac. "They'll do some repairs and fix it up a little bit, and they'll discount it to get it off their books." That is, if another foreclosure investor doesn't beat you to the property line.
