After a short sale, when can I buy a home?

If you’re paying cash, you can buy a home the day after you short sell your property.   You can also qualify for a home loan again soon after a short sale in some cases in two years or less.

Short sellers normally have to wait for a period of time after closing a short sale to qualify for a new mortgage loan, but the time frame and requirements vary depending on the type of loan and the down payment they are able and willing to pay.

For a conventional loan, the higher the down payment a buyer is willing to pay after a short sale, the shorter the amount of time that is required to wait to qualify for another loan (i.e. for conventional loans, 20% down payment buyers generally don’t have to wait as long as 10% down payment buyers and 10% down payment buyers generally don’t have to wait as long as 5% down payment buyers)

FHA is usually the fastest route for buyers who’ve gone through a real estate short sale and have less than a 10% down payment.