1031 Exchange: 2 Questions

[Michael Kiley]

I've decided to come out of my comfort zone in 2020 and exchange one of my SFH rentals for my first apartment building. The house is worth 85k and currently has no mortgage. 2 questions regarding 1031 Exchanges...

1. If there was a mortgage on the house when I sold it, would I be required to use less capital to purchase the apartment building? I'm aware that the purchase price needs to be the same or higher than the house I'm selling to defer 100% of the gain.

2. To get around the 45 days to locate the apartment after selling my house, is it possible to buy an apartment in my name, then sell my house, then use my LLC (house is held in LLC) to buy the apartment? (Hope this makes sense)

Thanks in advance!