ATTLEBORO - When mortgage bills they can't pay start to pile up, some homeowners think their only option is to pack up - and leave.

And more and more of them, most of whom were swept into the monetary maelstrom of the sub-prime mortgage debacle, slip away from their homes and their dreams, feeling forced into the dark world of financial ruin.

But real estate professionals say there's a way out for the debt deluge.

Homeowners who qualify for a "short sale" can walk away from their property with credit and hope for the future intact, albeit with an empty wallet, said local Realtor Brenda Landers, vice president of the Landers Team in Seekonk.

Home owners won't get a penny from the sale, but they won't pay a fee, either. And more importantly, the word "foreclosure" won't be indelibly stamped on their credit report, crippling their financial future. In the meantime, the bank gets a big portion of the home's value quicker and cheaper than through foreclosure. And although financial institutions take a loss on the property, the loss is usually smaller than in a foreclosure, said Landers, who works with attorney Chris DePalo and short sale negotiator Dan Balkun on the deals.

"The bottom line is there's an option for these people," Landers said. "They don't need to walk away from them and they don't need to be foreclosed."

Foreclosure is nothing short of a financial disaster for an individual, they said.

"The worst thing you can have on your credit report is a foreclosure," DePalo said. "It's something you may never recover from. A short sale can prevent that."

Ultimately, the bank has the final decision, but its an option for many people, Landers said.

"It's the lesser of two evils," she said.

In a short sale, the bank accepts a lower price for the home than is owed on the mortgage. By this avenue, it avoids costly foreclosure procedures and potentially bigger losses.

A short sale allows the homeowner to live in the home until it's sold - which helps the bank, more often than not an out-of-state institution, these days, because an unattended house can be damaged when pipes break or vandals strike.

Short sales, which require the establishment of a legitimate lower value for the home, based on assessments, comparable sales, appraisals and documentation of the owner's financial distress, have been used in other parts of the country for a long time.

They are, nonetheless, relatively new in the Northeast, said DePalo, who works for the law firm of Lepizzera-Laprocina in Warwick, R.I. "It's been used for a while in other states like Florida and Nevada, but it's been creeping into the Northeast over the last year and a half," he said.

The firm has been involved with the work for about a year.

"It's definitely a better avenue for all parties to take," he said.

The bank sets and pays the legal and real estate fees; the homeowner remains responsible for utilities and taxes.

And in the meantime, a new buyer gets a home that just a couple of years ago cost a lot more.

Landers said one short sale she did concerned a house on Anawan Road in North Attleboro that sold for $425,000 about two years ago.

The owners got a mortgage for $400,000, and when they couldn't pay, they were ready to run until they found out about short sales.

Landers put the home on the market for $369,000, then later reduced it to $329,000. At that price an open house attracted 27 qualified buyers, which in turn produced five bonafide offers, she said.

Once a purchase and sale agreement is struck, the deal has to be approved by the bank.

The seller has to provide extensive financial information and a letter explaining their destitution, DePalo said.

"The lender wants to see a hardship letter," he said. "They want to know why two years after someone took a mortgage, they can't afford it."

Once the bank is satisfied, the deal goes through.

"It's really a win-win for all parties involved," DePalo said.