There are several good articles at this link which will give you some information - https://www.google.com/search?q=work+2+years+at+same+job+to+qualify+for+mortgage&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

If the job you are doing now is the same type of job you did previously, you should be fine. Its only when you completely change careers that they look at the two year mark. Try a mortgage broker, they may have a bank that is willing to work with you.

Ask your Lender to verify your previous jobs that weren't in Vermont, to show a 2 year history. If you have too big of a gap, that could be the problem.

Would a parent co-sign the mortgage?

If you have been working 13 years with few breaks, have a decent credit score, and some money to put down -- hopefully at least 10% -- you should not be having this problem. I suggest you cast a wider net in terms of looking for a mortgage, including some of the reputable online mortgage services that are often able to act much more quickly than your local branch. I'm not going to recommend any particular ones, because you need to use due diligence and read online reviews of these companies, but one that you might start with is Quicken

Co signing is for severe risk takers. Not a good idea for most persons.

I know many parents who have co-signed mortgages for their adult children, for a variety of reasons. Their name also is on the deed. It really depends on the assets of the parents and the reliability of the adult children. In all but one case, the house was eventually re-financed and only the adult child was on the mortgage or the deed as by now, they fully qualified. In the one case, it's due to both the husband and wife being self-employees in fields that are economy-dependent. They have never missed a mortgage payment but their source of income is still considered too risky for lenders.

Interestingly, many years ago a woman I knew said they had to borrow out of their TIAA retirement funds in order to buy a house. Her husband was a high school math teacher and basketball coach and local lenders felt the basketball coach part meant his job was very high risk. And in the end it was - one losing season and his teaching contract was not renewed.

I believe you should only cosign if you are fully capable of dealing with the worst case: the other party defaults and you are financially able to carry the whole mortgage for as long as necessary without compromising your financial well-being. I don't care how stable the mortgage holders seem or what their intentions are...unpredictable stuff happens.

Find a new lender. Tell them your background and clearly mention your work history, they should know pretty quickly if they can help you or not. Some places (ex- credit union) may be more strict about loans because it's in house financing but someone out there has to give you a loan (assuming you're credit is good and you have some $$ in the bank).