1031 Exchange on appreciation only?

[Kenji Ignacio]

So I'm a little confused whether this can be used for a 1031 exchange. The current owner of the property had the place quit claimed to him several years ago. From the time of ownership, it was never resided in by the owner. It was rented out, but the owner isn't able to show any rent history on it since he wanted to avoid paying taxes. The way he wants to classify this in the exchange is that he "held the property for appreciation." Again, he never lived in it and wants to exchange that condo for a duplex or multifamily property.