mortgage short sale, buying a short sale The real estate market is saturated with homes for sale, and there are some good buys out there, especially if someone has the time to buy a mortgage short sale. Buying a short sale takes a little more time than buying a conventional home, whether it's a townhouse, condo or single family home because the mortgage short sale process is more complicated. The buyers have to work with the bank to purchase the home, and they have to take multiple offers before they accept the best one. Not only that, many times the banks do not have the staff they need to process all their mortgage short sale transactions, so there is a backlog that they are working with.

The mortgage short sale home is worth waiting for, however, because buying a short sale is a way to build almost instant equity. Since the bank often sells these homes at below market value, an owner has a strong opportunity to rent the home until the market improves, or put it back on the market and hope for a quick sale at prices at or above market value.