Can you live off campus at Alabama as a freshman? Do many students do this?
Freshman are required to live on campus except in unusual circumstances, such as having family in town and/or possibly dire financial constraints. I would guess that it’s possible to get a waiver for special needs/disabilities if really required, but it’d be some paperwork. If you have special circumstances, contact the school and ask. They are remarkably accommodating, in my experience. I haven’t heard of any freshman living off campus, so it must be pretty unusual. FWIW, nearly all students live off campus after the first year. I’d personally advise living on campus first year if at all feasible, as the dorms are really the way to get to know kids, etc, and it’s very convenient.
If your family owns property in town then yes. Quite a few families do buy houses/condos in town for children to live in as students and sell/rent them afterwords.
The deadline to request an exemption from on-campus housing is July 15, so any proof of ownership documents and the exemption request would need to be submitted before then.
Hope this helps,
Janine