Buying or selling a home is rarely easy, but in today’s housing market it can seem downright impossible.

While the credit crunch has made it more difficult for prospective home buyers to qualify for mortgages (most lenders now require a stellar credit score of at least 700 and a down payment of at least 10%), the glut of homes on the market has stretched the time it takes to sell a home from weeks to months.

In an effort to bring the housing market back to life, both federal and state governments have created new tax credits and programs to incentivize people to buy homes. Meanwhile mortgage lenders are working with struggling homeowners in an effort to keep them in their homes or at least cut their losses.