Overview
- Realtor.com’s July 2026 report, published Thursday, shows short-sale transactions have risen about 30% since 2023 and jumped 16% year over year from 2025 to 2026.
- Last year nearly 30,000 short sales closed, making up about 28% of distressed home sales even though foreclosures remain roughly twice as common.
- Short sales now capture about 9% more of a home’s estimated value than foreclosures, reversing a decade-long pattern in which short sales sold for deeper discounts.
- Short sales require lender approval, draw about 20% less online browsing and typically take roughly two months longer to close, but they can wipe out leftover debt and let sellers qualify for a new mortgage sooner than after foreclosure.
- Short sales are concentrated in mid-priced Western and Florida metros while foreclosures remain clustered in lower-cost markets where deeply discounted listings are drawing buyers and shaping local inventory after pandemic forbearance ended.