I jumped into that short sale, save-a-ton scheme and made an offer on a short sale in April. My offer was $15k over what the listing agent indicated was the highest bid. She was very sleezy, and would tell me "It's looking good!". But did I get that house? Hell no.
Hell, even if your offer is accepted, in the months that it takes the bank to ok it, they can choose to ditch you and accept any other offer more than yours during that process. So you could be waiting months and still end up homeless at the last moment.
I think this whole short sale/ foreclosure is such a racket. Or maybe I am just an ignoramus who just doesn't get the process. Whichever it is, I will be very hesitant to ever offer on a short sale ever again.