leathernecknw
Junior Member
I bought 3 houses this year, all as primary residences. The reason I could do this was because each time I upgraded and qualified for owner-occupied financing (zero down). The 3rd house I am living in. The 2nd house is on a 1-year lease. The 1st house I bought was a fixer and I had the intent on renting it after I made improvements. I even advertised it for rent but no serious takers. I then realized the values had gone up so much I decided to sell it instead. I finished fixing it and now it is sold and due to close on Sept 30th for a gross profit of over $56k in only 8 months of ownership. I'm finding out that I may not qualify for a 1031 exchange because I haven't owned it for 12 months even though there's no "minimum holding period" specified by the IRS. A red flag could go up and my intent to rent may be investigated. This could also cause an investigation into upgrading with owner-occupied financing on 3 houses in 6 months. Since I can show that I tried renting it would this prove enough intent? If not, is there another way I can avoid paying income tax on all that money somehow?