1031 exchange calculator

How much of your gain defers, how much becomes taxable boot, and the two deadlines that cannot be extended. Every rule applied here is cited below, because this is the calculator on the site where being confidently wrong costs the most.

Loaded with an example sale. Every figure is yours to change, and the results update as you type or drag.

The property you sell

Sale priceWhat the property you are giving up sells for.

Selling costsCommission, title, escrow, transfer tax.

Adjusted basisWhat you paid, plus improvements, minus depreciation taken.

Accumulated depreciationDeductions already taken. Taxed at a higher rate than capital gain.

Debt paid off on the saleThe mortgage cleared at closing.

Date the sale closedSets your 45-day and 180-day deadlines.

The property you buy

Replacement property priceBuy for less than the net sale price and the difference is taxable boot.

Debt taken on with the replacementTake on less than you cleared and the difference is mortgage boot.

Your tax position

Federal long-term capital gains rate

0%15%20%

Filing single: 0% on taxable income up to $48,350, 15% up to $533,400, 20% above.

Net Investment Income Tax (3.8%)

Does not applyApplies to me

Your marginal ordinary income rateOptional. Caps the depreciation recapture rate when it is below 25%.

Combined state tax rateOptional. States treat exchanges differently; check yours.

Gain deferred

$164,000

Of a $164,000 realized gain, $0 is recognized now as boot.

Estimated tax deferred: $32,600
Estimated tax due now: $0
Identify by: —
Close by: —

This is an estimate, not tax advice. A 1031 exchange has strict requirements this calculator does not check: the proceeds must go to a qualified intermediary and never to you, the property must be held for investment or business use, and the deadlines cannot be extended. Reverse exchanges, improvement exchanges, related-party sales and state clawback rules are outside what this tool models. Speak to a qualified intermediary before you list, and to a CPA before you file.

Where the gain goes

Realized gain$164,000

Estimated tax on an outright sale$32,600

Gain deferred$164,000
Tax deferred by the exchange$32,600

Your deadlines

Enter the date your sale closed to see both deadlines.

Both run from the day the sale closed, not from each other, and the second is not six months. It can land earlier than shown: the limit is the earlier of day 180 and your tax return's due date, including extensions.

Gain, boot and deferral

Sale price

$600,000

Selling costs

$36,000

Net sales price

$564,000

Adjusted basis

$400,000

Realized gain

$164,000

Cash boot

Mortgage boot

Total boot

Gain recognized now

Gain deferred

$164,000

Estimated tax

Taxed as depreciation recapture

Taxed as capital gain

Estimated tax on the exchange

Estimated tax on an outright sale

$32,600

Tax deferred

$32,600

On these numbers the whole gain defers. That result depends on meeting the 45-day and 180-day deadlines and on the exchange being handled by a qualified intermediary from the start — you cannot take receipt of the proceeds.

Boot is what makes an exchange partly taxable

The IRS puts it plainly: "If, as part of the exchange, you also receive other (not like-kind) property or money, you must recognize a gain to the extent of the other property and money received. You can't recognize a loss." (IRS, Like-kind exchanges — real estate tax tips)

Boot arrives two ways. Cash boot is what is left over when the replacement property costs less than the net sale price.Mortgage boot is the debt you cleared that you did not replace — and it is the one that surprises people, because it is taxable even when every dollar of cash went back into the new property.

Recognized gain is then the smaller of your realized gain and your total boot, never below zero — the rule Form 8824 states as "enter the smaller of line 15 or line 19, but not less than zero" (IRS, Instructions for Form 8824).

The two deadlines, and what people get wrong about them

You have 45 days from transferring the property you gave up to identify replacements in writing, and 180 days to close. Both run from the same day — the sale — which is the detail most often misread.

180 days is not 180 days after the 45-day deadline. It is 180 days after the sale.
180 days is not six months.
It can be shorter still: the limit is the earlier of the 180th day and your tax return's due date including extensions.

Both figures are from the Instructions for Form 8824, which is also the form that reports the exchange.

Why depreciation is taxed separately

Any gain you do recognize is not all taxed at one rate. Depreciation you previously deducted comes back first as unrecaptured section 1250 gain, taxed at a maximum 25% rate, and only what is left is taxed at your long-term capital gains rate (IRS, Topic 409). The calculator applies the recapture rate first for exactly that reason, and caps it at your ordinary rate when yours is lower.

Only real property qualifies

Since the 2017 tax act, "exchanges of machinery, equipment, vehicles, artwork, collectibles, patents and other intellectual property and intangible business assets generally do not qualify for non-recognition of gain or loss as like-kind exchanges" (IRS).