1031 Exchange a Flip?

[Devin Wilkins]

Hi All, I was day dreaming on a long drive yesterday and had a quick question that I'm sure the smart, helpful people of Bigger Pockets could help me understand - and hopefully lead to further learning. Can you 1031 Exchange a Flip? I haven't read all the rules for a 1031 but I imagine a limitation, if there is one, would be a required holding time before the property is eligible for a 1031. I haven't done the research, yet, but am asking as my first serious question to the bigger pockets community to break the ice and hopefully learn more about the 1031 Exchange - as the concept fascinates me. Thanks for the help in Advance! Devin

[Brad Schultheiss]

It is my understanding that the main requirement is intent.  If you intended to rehab a house and rent it out but during the process someone offered you a crazy price that made more sense than renting then you could do it.  This would be a one off scenario and certainly not scaleable.  Most of what I've read says you need to rent it out for atleast a year.