The first mistake investors make when approaching a short sale is so prevalent that it deserves its own separate article.

What is this mistaken belief?

Bogus Belief #1: Short sales are quick and easy.

This belief is bogus because banks have a tedious process they have to go through in order to agree to a short sale. They also have to explain the huge loss on the deal to their shareholders, and they have a lot less interest in seeing the deal move quickly than either you or your seller. Short sales thus take an unusually long period of time to complete.

To avoid making the mistake of believing that short sales are quick and easy, you need to understand the process and plan your timetable accordingly.

Once you have the property under contract and go to the lender to negotiate a short payoff, a number of things have to happen. First, the lender will order an appraisal or Broker