My family is in the same situation and I am having the same thoughts. We are trying to find the least painful way out from this madness.
However, I was told that if we don’t have any proof of hardship and our income did not change bank will not approve short sale and even more if we go into foreclosure, lender can pursue or assign deficiency liability. Bank even can sell it later to debts collectors, who really can make your life miserable.
The decision as to whether to pursue a Deficiency Judgement depends on whether the individual has any real assets worth pursuing and it looks like we do. In Florida, getting a deficiency judgment is not hard, and in some cases, is almost automatic (with the amount being the only real issue to be determined). However, most Lenders, Investors, and PMI companies don’t spend the $ to seek such judgments unless they have a reasonable expectation of recovery. Average Joe homeowner is not a high-percentage candidate, but real estate investors are another story. If someone has been through a completed foreclosure and owns other real estate, they should be very concerned. The statute of limitations for pursuit is generally 1 year (there are exceptions) and the judgment lien can stand for 7 years, but can be redeemed for more (in FL). The judgment lien can be adjudicated to the county where your real property is located as well (even in other states). FNMA (for example) has foreclosure law firms like MCW perform asset searches in making such determinations.

Please advice if you find anything worth to try.
Thank you in advance.