There has been a lot of talk lately in the press about the real estate market and the short sale market in particular. Many people may be confused about what a short sale is. A short sale occurs when a seller owes more then the property is worth and the bank is willing to accept a sale for less than the mortgage amount.

This represents a wonderful opportunity for both buyers and sellers. A short sale avoids foreclosures of South Florida real estate and homes and impacts the seller’s credit much less harshly than a foreclosure as it shows up on the credit report as paid in full.

Additionally, with a traditional foreclosure, the bank can get a judgment against the seller for any difference between the loan amount and the final sale price. In a short sale the bank marks the loan as paid in full and the seller does not owe any additional monies.

Everyday, more and more buyers are choosing to look only into short sales.  However, keep in mind the pitfalls of short sales, which are many. 

First of all, you won't get an answer regarding your offer for at least 6 weeks.  Each bank is different.  If there are two lenders involved, prepare to continue waiting even after the first lender has approved. 

There is an over saturation of properties on the market. This fact makes it much more difficult to sell your listings, the prices are going down quicker than they went up. Most of the sale are turning out to be Short Sales. The troubling part of all this is the techniques many Realtor's are taking that is hurting the market, other Realtors and most notably--the sellers.

Some experts attribute a decline in MLS home listing values to real estate professionals who do not fully understand the short sale process, in which banks accept less than the mortgage balance as an alternative to foreclosing on the home. “The prices they come in with are so artificially low,” says Johnson & Associates Inc. broker/associate Kendall Fudge.

CBS 4 attended a sold-out presentation of "Short Sale Essentials" at RAMB.  Over 170 REALTORS filled RAMB's Training Center to learn more about Short Sales and how they can assist homeowners in these times of record numbers of foreclosures. Click here to view the CBS4 report.

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- More home owners than ever are losing the battle to make their monthly mortgage payments.

Over 900,000 households are in the foreclosure process, up 71% from a year ago, according to a survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association. That figure represents 2.04% of all mortgages, the highest rate in the report's quarterly, 36-year history.

Another 381,000 households, or 0.83% of borrowers, saw the foreclosure process started during the quarter, which was also a record.

Welcome to 2008—a year promising one of the most important modern presidential races, the outcome of which will affect economic uncertainties and sway concerns about the nation’s overall health. There is one thing that is an absolute certainty for 2008—the two-year real estate downturn will continue to lower sale prices of area homes. There is no recovery coming—no leveling off or turnaround on the horizon.