As many long term readers will know well we always try to balance our reporting in PIN with a mixture of articles, some of which are about 'hands-on' matters such as investing strategies as well as giving interview style pieces with successful investors and trade professionals. But there are also some major topics which do need regular analysis and this month we once again take a look at Demographics and Retirement Living and in particular the need to look very closely at the population mix in your target areas.

Whether you are doing buy to let or to sell on property for profit, the need to understand your potential customer and their needs will ensure your business will more likely turn out to be a success. As I mentioned a few months ago in this column, the recent market upturn has reinforced to many people just how profitable property investing can be if sound business decisions are made. But in some UK regions net yields have fallen due to a combination of the recent rises in capital values alongside more benign rent trends, often due to more properties being offered to the market by both new and experienced landlords. This is certainly the case in the student accommodation market as our news report on page 7 underlines. Over the next few months we will be publishing a series of articles on how best to position your properties to maximize successful lettings, which continue on from our recent series of articles from Susie Cole on buying to sell.