There are many great real estate deals out there today! One such deal is a short sale. A short sale takes place when the bank agrees to discount the loan balance for a seller that is underwater on their mortgage, which is to say they owe more than the home is worth. On a national average, 14% of homeowners are currently underwater on their mortgages, according to Zillow.com, which makes way for plenty of short sale choices.

Very rarely are short sales actually short, in fact, most short sales take over 6 months to process as there are a multitude of steps that need to take place before the sale is complete. The first step is making certain that the lender approves the price and agrees to a short sale; in most cases banks are willing to take the lesser price in lieu of losing more money through a foreclosure. The problem is that with so many home owners trying to shed their properties, many lenders are flooded with negotiations of short sale offers. There are also many players in the short sale game that need to agree; the seller, the seller’s lender, the seller’s agents, your agent, your lender and well, you!

If you are a first time home buyer looking for the $8,000 tax credit, keep in mind that your sale must be complete by Nov 30 of this year, and the chance of having a short sale complete by that time is slim to none.

In most cases the homeowner is still living in their home that they have put up as a short sale, which could very well mean that the home would have less fixing up to do than in the case of an abandoned foreclosure. Patience is a virtue, if you have the time to wait for closing, than investing in a short sale, could be the way to go.