Lucked out: Ramlia Saeed, 29, and Saeed Uzzaman, 31, stand in front of their new home in Novi last month. The couple got the four-bedroom, two-bath house for $231,000 -- but they had to wait nearly five months to seal the deal. / JARRAD HENDERSON/Detroit Free Press

Brian Pannebecker, 52, of Shelby Township lived through the head-scratching experience of a short sale.

He made an offer on a 1,550-square-foot home a mile from his that he wanted as a rental. He waited for months while the seller and bank negotiated only to have his offer refused. The home went into foreclosure and the bank sold it last fall for exactly what he offered.

"I was begging them for six months to take $130,000, and they were so worried about...