What to do when owner refuses to sign off on the home?

first you would have to find out why the seller won't sign off.  then deal with that objection.  did the short sale approval make him liable in some way that he wasn't expecting?

are you a Realtor?  if the owner is trying to find a buyer that will sell the house back to the owner...that is fraud & it is illegal.  (not an arm's length transaction) Further, if the owner hasn't made payments in 2 yrs, his credit must suck.  how does he think he is going to buy-back anything?  

there are plenty of more deals out there. walk and go after the low hanging fruit.  If you are a Realtor, work w/ clients who value what you provide. If you are a buyer move on to another property.

In negotiation it's called the "call girl" principle. Meaning the value of services rendered are always less valuable after the service is rendered. 

Translated. When they were up against the wall, they needed a professional to help them. If they are trying to stall, or play games, then they feel they got what they want and don't need the help any longer.

Drop these pain in the ..... let the sheriff show up at their home and suffer the consequences.

There are too many homeowners in trouble that need help and appreciate when a professional can solve their problem.

hope that helps, not sure if it applies exactly to your situation, but that is how it goes down most times.

I would have to have more details on this to answer this exactly.  I don't know who you are referring to when you say the "owner".  The home owner occupant, or the bank.  I also do not know what you mean by "signing off".  Did the home owner accept an offer on the property and then refuse to close on it?  If there was no accepted offer then it sounds like maybe the amount of money offered on the home did not get approved by the bank that has the mortgage on the property.  Short sales do always guarantee a for sure sale. Most banks will only go so low on the amount for a short sale, and if they don't get that amount they will refuse it.  If the owner accepted an offer he may have found out later that the bank will not take the amount agreed upon. You must make sure the bank is going to take the offer before you proceed with the closing. Even if the bank holding the mortgage does agree to a certain sale amount they oftan change that amount later and then the transaction cannot proceed. The owner may be refusing to sign off because he does not want to move.  If a home owner who is going to lose their home in foreclose has their attorney file a bankruptcy on the morning of the sherrifs' sale  that will stop the foreclosure for up to a year.  They can also ask for the original deed with the legal description on it and if they can't get that it also stops the foreclosure process.  Most of the time the loan has been sold several times and it cannot be located.  I hope this helps you, but without all of the details I cannot answer this specifically.