What qualifies as a hardship in a short sale?  Many sellers start to think about a short sale when they are unable to sell their homes for the price that they had hoped to get.   Unfortunately simply being upside down on your home or being unable to sell for the price you want or being unable to lease for a rate that covers your mortgage or wanting to move from the suburbs to the city doesn't qualify as hardships.   In order to obtain a short sale, there has to be a legitimate hardship, such as unemployment, pay cut, divorce, death, illness, bankruptcy or other dramatic change in your circumstance that prevents you from meeting your mortgage obligation. 

The lender will want to see copies of your financials(tax returns, paystubs, and bank statements) to make sure that you can no longer pay for the mortgage and that you have a legitimate hardship. You will need to submit a letter explaining  why you have stopped making payments and why you can't pay the difference due upon the sale.    If the lender finds that you can make the mortgage and/or that you have sufficient assets to cover the difference, then your short sale will not be approved.