Photo by Travis Pratt Foreclosed houses, including this one in a northwest neighborhood in Frederick, are often littered with trash and articles left behind by the previous owner.

The master bathroom was cleared out -- toilet, sink and shower stall, gone.

"The only thing left was the drain in the corner," she said.

In Frederick County, damage to foreclosed properties is a growing problem as foreclosure listings rise, real estate agents said.

In July, 114 Frederick County foreclosures were listed, a 90 percent increase from July 2007, according RealtyTrac, a California-based foreclosure monitoring firm. There were 42 foreclosures listed in June.

Vindictive ex-owners, sour about losing their homes, sometimes take appliances or punch holes in the walls on their way out. Vandals trash empty houses. Years of not keeping up with maintenance piles up.

About half of foreclosed properties nationwide have substantial damage, according to a survey of real estate agents by Campbell Communications, a Washington marketing and research company.

Other foreclosed properties, however, are left in good condition and offer prime values, local real estate agents said.

Miller Marsden, who owns Exit Realty Prosperity Group in Frederick , had remembered showing the home with the emptied bathroom 15 years ago.

She returned to furniture and trash in the backyard -- a first for her.

"It just made me sad," Miller Marsden said. "I knew the house in its heyday, and it was disheartening to see in its present shape."

Sometimes, a home's appearance can be an indicator that it's on the foreclosure market.

Take, for example, a foreclosed Frederick ranch house, built around 1960. On a visit Monday, plastic bottles littered the overgrown yard. Newspapers rolled in plastic bags sat on the roof.

Inside the home, a shattered mirror on a hallway floor cracked under footsteps. A board covered a door without glass panels.

The house sold for $299,000 in December 2006, according to property records. It's now worth about $170,000, said Wayne Six, an appraiser with Six and Associates in Frederick .

Holes marked a bedroom window; BBs rusted in the windowsill. Vandals likely shot the windows, Six said.

Some newer foreclosed homes tell a similar story.

An eviction notice on the front door of a Frederick townhouse built in 2005 is a sign the family held on as long as they could.

Stains dotted the ripped carpet, and holes could be found in the drywall.

Lights and a fan were still on downstairs. Mops stood against the walls. Trash surrounded a box spring and mattress in one bedroom, and a used kitty litter box was left uncleaned in a bathroom.

"This is just a sign of the times right now," Six said.

Upstairs, broken glass dotted the carpet, and another mattress sat in the hallway.

Some owners don't have time or money to remove their belongings, Six said, and some don't want to face the facts.

From June 2001 to June 2005, Frederick County housing prices increased about 20 percent each year, Six said. From June 2005 to June 2008, prices fell a total of 20 percent to 25 percent, depending on location and design.

Those who purchased a home at the market's peak around June 2005 have been hit the hardest, Six said. Homes purchased around that time became less than what owners paid for them, and some owners couldn't keep up with rising adjustable mortgages.

The situation can make for angry ex-homeowners.

"They feel like they weren't treated fairly by the bank, and if they can't have the home, no one can," said Terry Fox, a real estate agent with Fox Realty Group in Frederick .

Losing a home because of foreclosure is stressful, Fox said.

"It really is an emotional thing to go through," he said. "Everyone reacts differently. Some people know they got in over their head and move on, while others are bitter."

That's why some former owners take appliances, Fox said, and sell them in classified ads to earn extra cash, or they take fixtures to recycling centers.

Damage can also result from homeowner neglect, said Abby Zanger, who deals with foreclosures at Mackintosh Realtors in Frederick .

"Most people didn't have the means to fix up their house in the first place, which is why they end up losing their home," Zanger said.

In one instance, an owner didn't install gutters on the roof, and mold is growing throughout the house, Zanger said.

When foreclosed homes are left damaged, real estate agents are left to fix the house, or the property is sold as is, real estate agents said.

Fixing the house can be time consuming, Fox said. Real estate agents, who act as a go-between banks and possible buyers, collect bids from contractors. The bank pays for the repairs.

Sometimes, real estate agents arrange for trash removal, Zanger said, and the next buyer repairs the house. These cases offer good deals for savvy buyers.

"With a little bit of elbow grease -- cleaning some carpets and adding some paint -- you can turn some places into amazing properties," Zanger said.

Potential buyers should pay for a home inspection, Zanger said.

"The seller -- the bank -- won't do much for you, but at least that way you can go in with your eyes wide open and see what you're getting into," Zanger said.