If you have the money, this is a good time to go house hunting. One couple thought a house in foreclosure was just what their budget needed, but they learned a lesson on the subject of "short sale.”

That’s when a homeowner sells a house for less than what is still owed on the mortgage.

Jay and Pat West are home buyers who have a signed purchase agreement for a house headed toward foreclosure. "It was a good deal."

After signing the agreement and paying an earnest fee, the Wests were told two weeks before moving in by the seller’s mortgage holder that the house had been sold to someone else.

"We were kind of dumbfounded to be honest with you," says Jay. "I thought it was all over with.”

A leading expert on short sales and foreclosures says he's seen the rug pulled out from under buyers the day of closing. NP Dodge vice president Mark Wehner teaches realtors about foreclosures and short sales.

“The bank would not sign off on the short sale, thus Mr. Seller you can’t sell the property free and clear. The buyer can’t get the property they’ve agreed to get and everybody goes their separate ways.”

Wehner says buyers and their realtors need to investigate whether the foreclosure process has started on a home and be warned that the mortgage holder has veto power on a short sale.

"The little guy is getting squished by the big guy,” says Pat.

Jay and Pat got a refund of the earnest money, but Jay says he won’t try to sue the mortgage holder. “I can’t do nothing about it that’s why it’s unfair. I don’t have the money to fight those people. It'd be foolish for me to even do it."

The Wests aren't out any money, but have lost time looking for a house.

This spring, Wehner will teach a three-hour class to realtors on short selling and foreclosures and he expects the class to be full.