A short sale occurs when a homeowner lists their home at a price less than the amount currently owed to their lender. The selling price is essentially “short” of repaying the loan balance even if the property were to sell at the full asking price.  It is also important to note that this price is not initially a price the lender will accept; it is only a price the seller is asking.  Many times Short Sales are listed lower than the lender will agree to, in order to generate offers. Lenders wait for an offer before reviewing possible property value.  Short sales require patience as they generally take much longer to negotiate and close, depending on if they have had offers presented previously or not. Sometimes it can take over six months just to get a response from a bank for a short sale.  The current average is about three months from initial offer.  This is because lenders treat these situations differently and large institutions move slowly. Ultimately lenders will be the ones suffering the monetary loss, so they have the authority to approve a short sale or choose to go to foreclosure.