Seller Fiancing as a retirement strategy

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Quite often I hear people talk of seller financing as more of a last ditch resort when disposing of property that one might not be able to sell any other way. I'm sure that many of you have come across these kind of deals.

I have been a buy and hold investor for many years and through various means now have several paid for properties that have substantial built in gains. At this juncture in my life and business, I will be doing 1031 exchanges to build better cash flows and look for better opportunities for appreciation.

I have considered seller financing now, but don't see that as being quite as advantageous as exchanging properties. When I near retirement though, it may make sense to use seller financing as a way of deferring gains recognition. This type of sale would be treated currently as an installment sale which could be quite beneficial. I have a number of properties that between appreciation and depreciation recapture would yield large gains if sold traditionally.

I know that some of you have considered this strategy. I would appreciate hearing your thoughts, opinions, laughter, etc. Feedback is a great way for everyone to learn.