There are many reasons that investing in real estate in college towns makes sense.  There is a continuous supply of students and visiting professors as renters.  There are better job markets due to the educational level of the  residents.  Retirees are attracted to the cultural and sporting events.  The quality of life may be higher for the above reasons, reducing crime making schools more accountable as well as visitors streaming to events making customers prevalent for the businesses there.  The quality of life attracts more people to set up their telecommuting and other  businesses.  In the end, you have far more certainty weighing in on the side of keeping vacancies to a minimum.