Someone I met purchased their home in 2006. The purchase price was high $380k for the area but it was when prices were soaring here in South Florida. Now they can't afford it, they switched jobs, insurance & taxes went up & they are in a bind. I don't want to list it because the prices are not there & they don't have cash for the difference when closing comes around. I don't want them to get into foreclosure, & I have heard there are many different ways to give their house back to the lender. Can anyone give me the options they may have? I know one option is a short sale, but what else is there?

Giving the house back to the lender or having a short sale can have the same effect on their credit as a foreclosure depending on how it's reported.
There is no easy answer to what your prospect needs. If they are upside down they can ride it out or walk away, neither of which is appealing.

Deed In Lieu. If they call their mortgage lender they can explore that option and they would fill them in on all the parameters.

Thanks, I will have them call the lender & get all the details.

Are they current on their payments? There are lot of websites that will extend help to them. Ask them to be very carefully. They need to call the loss and mitigation dept.

Good Luck

Have them give these guys a call, they are a non profit, and can help them with the options that may be available, including working with their lender:

http://www.995hope.org.