A land contract and a short sale are two entirely different entities.

The advantage of selling using a short sale is that you actually sell your house and you're able to move on with your life. The disadvantage is that it severely injures your credit. Also, some lenders are more cooperative than others; some may be perfectly content to let your house go to foreclosure, rather than to approve a short sale.

The advantage of selling via a land contract is that you retain title to the property (versus, let's say, a "subject to"). You may receive some money up front; you receive monthly payments; and you may ultimately sell the property to the purchaser. So, if all goes well, you preserve your credit and you sell your house. The disadvantage is that you aren't selling right away. The land contract violates the lender's due on sale clause (something you should consider, but it's not a deal-breaker). If the purchaser defaults, you might have to go through a foreclosure action, rather than a simple eviction.

If you post more details, I may be able to give you more advice, or point you in the right direction for additional information.

Hope that helps.

Beware, there are a lot of predatory scam artists taking advantage of the financial difficulties people are facing at present. Ask an attorney for further advice before you act.

If you are in default and experiencing some hardship that is preventing you from remaining current in your payments, a short sale is likely your best option. Here's the advantage of a short sale to just allowing a property to go into foreclosure: It goes on your credit report for seven years, instead of ten, your debt is forgiven and it shows any lender in the future that you are a responsible person.