From the information you provided it seems like you should have no problem. If you need help with the mortgage end of things I would be happy to assist you both and set up a consulation.

Dear Jenny,

This is a great question, and I commend your wisdom on purchasing a home while going to school. It is not at all impossible to get a loan for your situation. It seems that lenders' policies change pretty often about the specific definition of "owner-occupied", since in your case you are technically the owner (if you are on the title) although your husband is solely responsible for the loan. However, since you are wanting to rent out a bedroom, this will put you in the investment loan arena. Right now, investment loan rates are not that good. If you do not claim any rental income, however, you might want to look into some 5/1 or 7/1 ARMs, which would give you a pretty good rate for the time that you are in grad school (I recently had a client do a 5/1 ARM for her grad school time). When you talk to a lender, find out exactly whether your situation would enable you to get an "owner-occupied" loan, since different lender do have varying criteria for that.

Take care,
Mariya

Jenny,
It sounds like your plan is pretty stable. I don't think you will have an issue with the mortgage, given the details you provided above. I would suggest using a local lender who would be intimately familiar with your situation (it happens pretty often here) and would be able to handle it smoothly.
One of the general rules for rental properties in Urbana is that you can have no more than 4 unrelated people living there. You shouldn't have any problem with that :)
Another item to be aware of is that Urbana requires landlords to register their properties with the city (so they can manage inspections and make sure landlords are not slumlords). I believe the cost is about $50/year for a single family house. Again, you should not have a problem with this, just something to be aware of.
Good luck !
Mark

Lynn has given you good advice. i would add that you will need to check zoning regulations in the neighborhood where you purchase to make sure that renting a room is legal. Good Luck!

You should not have a problem DUE to fact that many families one spouse or both travel majority of time. There corporate office in other states and etc. You should be fine.

Be careful when you lease a bedroom out and to who, run credit and background checks have a signed agreement with the tenant.

Now is great time purchase, interest rates low, great opp's on homes with equity.