Short Sales
I am working with a client who is 4 months past due in making a mortgage payment. The mortgage company told me that they would not enternain any short sales unless the house has been on the market for at least 6 months. Have anyone been able to buy a home on a short sale under 6 months of it being on the market? 
There is a difference between what you are told, verbally, by a clerk, and what is articulated, in writing, in response to your written request for information. As you know, all lenders are not the same, nor are all mortgage loans. The criteria for short sale consideration varies from lender to lender, loan to loan. Your initial request to any lender should include a request for their loan servicing criteria... in writing.
Is the lender you spoke with blowing smoke up your... er, in your direction?
It seems unusual to me, but it depends upon the loan type, and the investor who owns the loan, or the PMI (if any) who may a stake in the loan servicing, too.