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Is a 1031 Exchange Right For You?

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Team Jodi Realty

You may have heard of people "exchanging" their investment property to avoid huge tax bites out of their sale proceeds. An exchange of real property can be a valuable tool to defer or avoid capital gains tax on real estate transactions.

Section 1031 of the IRS Code offers real estate investors a great investment opportunity to build wealth and save taxes. By completing a 1031 exchange, you can dispose of investment property, use all of the equity to acquire replacement investment property, defer the capital gains tax that would ordinarily be paid, and leverage all of you equity into a replacement property.

Replacement property acquired in an exchange must be of "like-kind" or similar to the property being sold. The following are examples of properties that could be eligible for a 1031 exchange:

* Single Family Rental
* Multi-Family Rentals
* Farms/Ranches
* Raw Land
* Retail Offices
* Motels/Hotels
* Golf Course
* Industrial
* Leases of 30 years or more

Properties NOT eligible under 1031 include foreign property and primary residences.

1031 exchanges are primarily designed for people interested in investment properties, not for typical home sellers and buyers looking to purchase a residence.

 

Seller Tip: Exchanges usually involve slightly greater costs than sales, so not every transaction should be an exchange.

 

 Seller Tip:  Your personal tax advisor can offer information specific to your situation and help you determine if a 1031 is right for you.

 


More info on Chapel Hill & Durham North Carolina Real Estate
Bill Exeter
Exeter 1031 Exchange Services, LLC - San Diego, CA
1031 Tax-Deferred Exchange Expert

Hi Jodi,

Great post and information. 

I wanted to clarify two points.  You can exchange foreign investment property for foreign investment property, but not foreign property for United States (domestic) property.  And, the costs have come way down over the years so that a typical 1031 exchange only add about $750.00 to the total cost of an investor's transaction. 

Have a very Merry Christmas!

Dec 21, 2007 07:28 AM
Anonymous
Jodi Bakst

Hi William,

 Thank you for the clarification.  I appreciate it.

 Have a wonderful holiday and a healthy and happy New Year.

 Jodi

Dec 21, 2007 12:00 PM
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