The 1031 Strike Zone - Does My Property Qualify?

Whether or not your property qualifies for a 1031 exchange is determined by whether or not it fits in the IRS’s strike zone for a 1031. Inside this strike zone are properties held for investment or business purposes. We have talked at length about the various types of property that fall within this strike zone, but what exists outside the strike zone for 1031 exchanges?

Outside the Strike Zone

Outside the 1031 strike zone are 2 major categories:

1. Properties used primarily for personal use like a lake cabin or a ski chalet, or the car you use to drive to the grocery store. You are not holding these for investment or business purposes. They are for personal use.

2. Inventory or property you hold primarily for resale. Let’s say a taxpayer buys a big tract of land and chops it up into parcels that they then sell to the public to build homes on. Is that taxpayer holding that property for investment or business purposes or are they holding it for inventory for sale to the public? A surly IRS agent would say the latter and deny a 1031 exchange.

So condo converters, developers, and even house rehabbers or flippers don’t fit neatly into the 1031 strike zone. If you fall into one of these categories and are considering a 1031 exchange, contact a qualified intermediary to discuss your options.

• Start Your Exchange: If you have questions about whether or not your Minnesota property qualifies for a 1031 exchange, feel free to call me at 612-643-1031.

Defer the tax. Maximize your gain.

© 2025 Copyright Jeffrey R. Peterson All Rights Reserved

What is a Charitable Remainder Trust?

Many people view the charitable remainder trust as an alternative to the 1031 exchange. But what exactly is a charitable remainder trust and how does it work?

What is a Charitable Remainder Trust?

A charitable remainder trust (sometimes referred to as a CRT) is a mechanism of giving the property away but retaining some of the economic benefits and incomes from the investment.

However, the benefit of doing a 1031 exchange is that you get to keep the ownership of the property entirely in your own name and you’re allowed to keep the control over the investment entirely in your own domain.

Eventually, when you die your heirs can inherit that property with a stepped-up basis. So the CRT may be less attractive to folks that are looking to move this wealth to their next-generation heirs and maintain the safety and security of having a steady stream of income while they’re alive. They control the property, they own the property, and eventually they pass the property to their heirs with a stepped-up basis.

• Start Your 1031 Exchange: If you have questions about 1031 exchanges, feel free to call me at 612-643-1031.

Defer the tax. Maximize your gain.

© 2022 Copyright Jeffrey R. Peterson All Rights Reserved

Post-Exchange Refinancing

Many people have questions about refinancing their replacement property after their exchange is over. Here we will answer some FAQs about refinancing after a 1031 exchange and offer some tips and best practices.

Refinancing after a 1031 Exchange

First off, refinancing one’s old relinquished property in anticipation of an exchange should be differentiated from post-exchange refinancing, done in a separate transaction after the exchange is completed. I think that the stronger more defensible position is for a post-exchange refinance (done in a separate transaction after the last replacement property has been received by the taxpayer to complete their exchange).  I do not endorse refinancing one’s relinquished property, especially if a sale/exchange of the property is looming or anticipated to occur in the near future.

There is precious little authority available on this topic. However, these topics are discussed in section 4:14 of Tax Free Exchanges Under §1031, which states that: 

“current case law favors the position that the taxpayer can obtain tax-free cash from an increase in debt on the taxpayer’s property prior to or after closing of an exchange.”

Additionally, the American Bar Association Section of Taxation has prepared Comments Concerning Open Issues in Section 1031 Like-Kind Exchanges.  On point is Answer 2b set forth below:

[The italicized text below represents what I think is the current thinking among knowledgeable tax commentators.]

A-2b. POST-EXCHANGE REFINANCINGS.

Post-exchange refinancing should be of less concern from a tax perspective than pre-exchange refinancing. Here the integration of the refinancing with the acquisition of replacement property should not matter. Even where a new loan is obtained at the time or immediately following a taxpayer's acquisition of replacement property in an exchange, receipt of cash by the taxpayer should not be treated as boot.

There is, however, virtually no authority addressing this issue. The key to the distinction between pre- and post-exchange refinancing is that the taxpayer will remain responsible for repaying a post-exchange replacement property refinancing following completion of the exchange whereas the taxpayer by definition will be relieved from the liability for a pre-exchange relinquished property refinancing upon transfer of the relinquished property.

A fundamental reason why borrowing money does not create income is that the money has to be repaid and therefore does not constitute a net increase in wealth. This is clearly the case in a post-exchange refinancing and there is no analytic reason to characterize such financings as being in lieu of fictitious payments by the seller of replacement property. Thus, we encourage the publication of a revenue ruling which indicates that money received in a post-exchange refinancing will not constitute "boot" in an exchange.

• Start Your 1031 Exchange: If you have questions about post exchange refinancing, feel free to call me at 612-643-1031.

Defer the tax. Maximize your gain.

© 2022Copyright Jeffrey R. Peterson All Rights Reserved

How to Use a Contract for Deed to Acquire 1031 Exchange Replacement Property

Let’s say you’re at day 170 of your 180 day 1031 exchange period and you don’t have your new replacement property lined up and ready to go. What happens? Are you forced to pay the capital gains taxes and not do a 1031 exchange?

Cutting it Close in a 1031 Exchange

We’ve had clients who have gone right down to the wire on their 180 day exchange time frame. In one instance, it was caused by a snafu with the bank. For whatever reason, the bank could not get the financing approved. The seller was willing, the buyer was willing, but the bank had some sort of difficulty. Without the bank’s money, it’s hard to close on the replacement property. So we said to the client: “why don’t you approach the seller and offer to buy the property on a short term contract for deed, under which the buyer receives equitable title.”

Purchasing a property via a contract for deed is a clever way to get a deal done so that the client can identify their identified replacement property within the 180 day time frame.

In the Midwest, land contracts and contracts for deed are very popular. This particular client that we were working with was in New York, where they don’t do a lot of contracts for deed. So depending on your geographical location, the local customs and practices may dictate the extent of your options.

Contact a Qualified Intermediary

If you’re considering a 1031 exchange, contact a qualified intermediary at CPEC1031 today to work through the details of your transaction. Contact our qualified intermediaries today at our office in Minneapolis to get your 1031 exchange off the ground!

• Start Your 1031 Exchange: If you have questions about 1031 exchanges, feel free to call me at 612-643-1031.

Defer the tax. Maximize your gain.

© 2021 Copyright Jeffrey R. Peterson All Rights Reserved

Can You do a 1031 Exchange Involving Notes?

In Minnesota (or any other state, for that matter) can a person sell a single family rental property and do a 1031 exchange to purchase performing notes in other states?

Notes are Excluded from 1031

Notes are specifically excluded from 1031 exchange, so you cannot exchange out of a rental property and into performing notes (regardless of where the transaction takes place).

Here is some additional information from the tax code (26 U.S. Code § 1031): 

(1) In general, no gain or loss shall be recognized on the exchange of property held for productive use in a trade or business or for investment if such property is exchanged solely for property of like kind which is to be held either for productive use in a trade or business or for investment.
(2) Exception. This subsection shall not apply to any exchange of—
(A) stock in trade or other property held primarily for sale,
(B) stocks, bonds, or notes,
(C) other securities or evidences of indebtedness or interest,
(D) interests in a partnership,
(E) certificates of trust or beneficial interests, or
(F) choses in action.

For purposes of this section, an interest in a partnership which has in effect a valid election under section 761(a) to be excluded from the application of all of subchapter K shall be treated as an interest in each of the assets of such partnership and not as an interest in a partnership.

• Start Your Exchange: If you have questions about what qualifies for a 1031 exchange, feel free to call me at 612-643-1031.

Defer the tax. Maximize your gain.

© 2017 Copyright Jeffrey R. Peterson All Rights Reserved