The shake out in the subprime lending market has put many homeowners into a situation where they are facing a short-sale or foreclosure. There are a lot of investors out there looking for homeowners in dire straits willing to sell their property to get out from under the mortgage and then lease it back from the investor so they don't have to move.

Before moving in such a direction, we recommend a quick trip to WorkItOut.com, a web site created by the mortgage industry to help borrowers in default.

Every year several million people like yourself find themselves in default, or about to go into default, on their mortgage. The mortgage industry understands that this is a very stressful and agonizing time and we want to do everything possible to work with you to resolve the problem. The good news is that we have many wonderful programs, generally called loss mitigation alternatives, that might help you cure your existing default or at least avoid a foreclosure sale. The bad news is that despite our best efforts, we're having problems reaching you, and even when we reach you, we're having problems fully explaining to you the many loss mitigation alternatives that are now available.

What exacerbates a developing short sale or foreclosure situation is procrastination on the part of homeowners. Knowledge is power. If you are facing such a situation call your lender to educate yourself on the options available and visit WorkItOut.com.