SPECIFICS   A short sale is when the lender agrees for the property to be sold at a price lower than the mortgage balance owed.   A deed-in-lieu is when the lender receives the house deed in place of the mortgage balance, although in some cases the lender will still pursue the homeowner for the leftover mortgage balance, which is called a deficency judgement.   A HAFA short sale or deed-in-lieu prohibits the participating lender from pursuing a deficiency judgement.   HAFA sets timeframe on the Short sale process to increase the chance of success and shorten your waiting time.  By also providing incentive to the lender, the program gives every part a further reason to avoid the foreclosure process   Hope this brings clarity to the question 02/16/2012