Getting a loan on a medical student stipend

[John H.]

I am a 3rd year medical student with a special military program called HPSP. The military pays for my schooling plus $2,100/month living expenses for me to go to school. I have been wanting to get a home loan for some time but all the lenders say that my "stipend" of $2,100 doesn't count as income. My wife will get a job this summer... so maybe I can see if that will count as income... but I would really like to get into a multi family home for this next year so I can live in it for a year before changing cities and going to residency (which will have a larger and more authentic income).

I was looking at really inexpensive homes in this area (Phoenix) which are 30-40k but have recently been looking at quadraplexes... (no-one wants to finance so 30-40k). A lot more expensive (170k) but great potential. I am positive about my ability to pay but it doesn't look good on paper with my stipend. Great credit. Most my savings goes into my IRA (25k). Any ideas?