I cannot stress to you enough how important it is to have a good real estate agent representing you when it comes to short sales. There is so much that goes into a short sale and it is so important that you have someone who knows what they are doing. It is also important that they stay on top of things as recently I was dealing with an agent who said we had the short sale approved (I was working with the buyer) and the bank was ready to go. However, I was not ready to spend my client's money yet. I wanted to protect them and make sure they really had approval to move forward to do their inspections. I wanted something in writing. So, what did I do? I waited, and waited, called and called the listing agent only to find out the bank had sold this property from underneath us and let it go to trustee sale-they actually foreclosed on it. Yes, that is correct! I felt so bad for my clients as they were first time buyers and ready to go with twins and another child with one on the way. I felt bad, but they were very nice about it actually and felt that it was not meant to be. The other agent, I felt, dropped the ball. She should have stayed in better communication with the bank. It appeared that the right hand did not know what the left hand was doing at the bank. But, that happens and that's why it is so important to stay in constant communication with the banks.