The large amount of short sale on the market in Greater Phoenix cannot be ignored; this inventory makes up a substantial portion of the available stock for home buyers and investors; some cities on the outskirts don't leave buyers much choice but to pursue a short sale.

When a bank receives an offer for a property subject to a short sale it's usually one of several offers on the property and probably one of dozens if not hundreds of contracts that need looking over. 

It's no wonder that so many things can land a contract in the bin, not to mention often waiting for weeks if not months for a response.  This time lag creates aggravation and additional risk plus the loss of time.  For most investors the waiting time is not as important it's more a part of the business but for home buyers this can be very frustrating and costly.
Both buyers and investors can do several things to to help push their contracts to the forefront.

Provide the Bank with a complete package.  This means that the information must be legible easily viewable and in an orderly layout. 

Some of the things that need to be included are:

• Information for all parties involved with relevant contact information and loan numbers.
  a complete and legible purchase contract.
• An estimated Net Sheet.  This net sheet could also include a scenario of going through a foreclosure and the outcomes for both.
• Include any loan specific documents.
• You should not include anything that was not asked for. Unnecessary documents may just put your offer back in the pile.
• Keep the story simple. Break it down to clear concise sentences and avoid lengthy overviews of how bad the property is.  The story is important in a short sale because if explains to the loss mitigator the circumstances involved and the position of each party.
• With the offer make sure you provide proof of financing and if it's a cash offer then proof of funds.
• Don't ask too much of the bank, make the contract simple.
• Know the loan you're dealing with; what type of financing the seller has.  A conventional loan requires different documents then a VA, FHA loan, or securitized loans for that matter.

What happens after you submit your offer could be anything.  Even a 100% asking price offer could be rejected.  A comprehensive but simple package allows a loss mitigator to quickly review an offer and this gives you a much better chance of completing the purchase.

By no means is, the list above, a complete list of things you can do or should do.  Each purchase / sale is different, much more so then a normal transaction.