  We have measured the fraction of bars in nearby spiral galaxies using
near-infrared J, H, and K_s images of 151 spiral galaxies from 2MASS. This
local sample provides an anchor for the study of the evolution of the bar
fraction and bar properties with redshift. We identify bars by analyzing the
full two-dimensional light distribution and requiring a combined ellipticity
and position angle signature. The combined bar signature is found in 59% of the
galaxies. The bar fraction increases to 67% when we include "candidate" bars,
where only the ellipticity signature is present. We also measure the change in
the bar fraction as a function of bar size; the bar fraction drops to 36% for
bars with a semi-major axis larger than 4 kpc. We find that infrared bars
typically extend to one-third of the galactic disk, with a deprojected relative
size of <a_{bar}/R_{25}> ~ 0.3 +/- 0.2. Early-type spirals host significantly
larger bars, consistent with earlier studies. The <a_{bar}/R_{25}> is two times
larger in early-types than in late-types. The typical bar axial ratio (b/a) is
\~0.5, with a weak trend of higher axial ratios for larger bars.
