If you're looking for a house to buy or checking out your competition because you're selling, you've probably started seeing these words: "Short sale." It sounds like a wish to sell quickly - and in essence, it is - but more importantly, it means the seller is trying to get rid of the house for less than he or she owes on it.

When they work out, short sales can be a deal for buyers and a relief for sellers in danger of foreclosure. But they're complex. Short sales require the lender's OK, and there's no incentive for the lender to approve an offer if it thinks it can do better by foreclosing and selling the house itself.

Negotiating short sales isn't like negotiating regular sales, said Andrew Lehr, an agent with ReMax Signature in Baltimore. He can't simply take buyers' offers to the seller. The lender looms large.

"You're ... dealing with a third party that can be in a whole different time zone, so the communication is not as effective," Lehr said. "I always try to educate people putting offers in on short sales that it could be a drag-out process."

Yes, you heard that right. Short sales are not, on the whole, short.

Phillip R. Robinson, executive director of Civil Justice, a nonprofit legal-help group in Baltimore, said any homeowner in trouble should talk to a nonprofit housing counselor before signing anything. There are a lot of scammers out there just dying to take advantage of you while you're down.

"Get a Realtor and go to one of the state-approved housing counseling agencies that will provide free advice - independent advice," Robinson said. He recommends agent or legal representation for buyers, too. "Make sure you're not getting involved in a transaction that's illegal in some way."

Find Jamie's blog at baltimoresun.com/ realestatewonk