A surprising number of people are using the phrase "real estate short sale" currently and that has drawn a number of curious people to wonder what all the commotion is all about. Anyone who has read newspapers or watched TV has probably come across some sort of stories about the declining real estate market leading banks to consider real estate short sales as an alternative to foreclosure. Real estate prices have dropped dramatically, and the sell time has risen as well. Detroit and similar regions are, it is fair to say, experiencing a full real estate market meltdown. These declining real estate markets are the main reason for the rise in short sale real estate.

Banks undergo a real estate short sale when they let a property be sold for an amount of money that is less than what it is worth. The following two conditions must be met in order for the bank to approve such a deal. Foremost, you will need to have a market value that is in such bad shape that the sale price of the property cannot cover the balance on the mortgage. The second condition is kind of obvious, but it dictates that the owners will be unable to continue making mortgage payments on the property.

Let's look at an example property that was bought five years ago for the rate of 217,000 dollars with an adjustable rate mortgage. Additionally, the owners took out a second mortgage of 10,000 dollars, which brought their total owed to 227,000 dollars.

Let's also believe that the property is in a part of the country where the market values have fallen to 215,000 dollars for similar properties, and that the adjustable mortgage interest rate has risen from seven to eleven percent. Finally, add the fact that one of the owners has just lost her job and the makings of a real estate short sale situation become apparent.

In avoiding time delays and expenses, the bank will probably decide to go with a short sale. The reason for this is that the banks believe it is better to get the property off their books and accept a smaller amount of money they are guaranteed to get than to accept an unknown amount in the future. This is generally how a real estate short sale works, though there are other complications that can arise from having owners and lenders not agreeing to the terms of the sale.

A real estate short sale is not a very pleasant experience, but it certainly isn't the worst experience they could have. If nothing else, it certainly beats being forced to accept a foreclosure on your credit report. These short sales can give the smart real estate investor a great buying opportunity.