Christopher,

I agree with Bryan. I just want to throw my two cents in here on his comment about patience. Be ready for a long drawn out process.

Short sales in Stafford are taking about 2-5 months to get to the closing table from the time of contract between buyer and seller compared to 30-45 days in a normal sale.

Best of luck to you and your offer

PMI is known as the acronym for private mortgage insurance. Private Mortgage Insurance is used when a borrower has less than 20% for a down payment. Private mortgage insurance protects mortgage lenders against potential losses in the event of borrower default.

If a borrower defaults on his conventional mortgage (goes 90 days late on a payment), the lender files the state-specific foreclosure notice and sends in a claim to the insurance company to recover as much as 20% of the mortgage balance. This, in turn, gives the lender a smaller risk when the lender sells the property to recover their losses.

So it is routine for the bank to first contact the PMI company before approving your offer. Sit tight and your patience will be rewarded.