[zetta]

No experience personally. I'd recommend finding someone who has had a short sale and felt the negotiator did a good job -- or if that's hard to find, ask for references from potential negotiators that you interview and double check the facts of the sales with public records. It's an area that is potentially ripe for scam artists, just like negotiators that claim they can convince your bank to refinance. My mother's boyfriend paid $3k to a firm that was supposed to help him get better terms on his loan, but they didn't get him any relief and now he's out the money and is in foreclosure anyway. So explore the options, but be cautious before you put any money down.