It's much more difficult to evict in Durham than say, Raleigh, even though it sometimes just comes down to how the judges work with the tenants based on local demographics.

demographics of long term note investors is 50 to 90 YO  folks... its the youngsters that go for the rental houses and or those that don't know about note investing ... they are both great if done correctly.. and they both have their advantages of course.notes have no specific tax advantages but are great for IRAs especially roths... rentals in the right spot can be great as they can go way up in value while throwing off cash flow.

Know the military demographic. 

I think many areas of the country are overbuilt with golf courses for the aging demographic they serve.The only deal I have been involved in (I was the listing agent for some of the golf course lots) had a goal of recovering the majority of the acquisition price with the sale of the lots along the course.On the flip side it would be easy to get partners because of the prestige many associate with owning a course.

Do you have local connection or is it just based on economics/demographics?

I particualry like Indianapolis and Kansas City for their strong economic/demographic factors and the Quad Cities and select parts of Cleveland for their afforability. 

Asses your own strengths (and weaknesses) into the situation.If it's commercial this doesn't apply--commercial is a totally different animal--traffic counts, neighborhood demographics, will build to suit offers, etc....Just my 2 cents.

What kind of tenants are you prepared to deal with, aka, who are your personal preferences for a target demographic?  

For instance, the demographic that purchases $400,000 properties is not the same as the demographic that purchases million-dollar properties.

As you mentioned it's really based on your market and guest demographic I think.