Depending on goals and timelines, the 1031 process can be a long term process with an emphasis of having a follow on deal.

The smart play is to always be tuned in to the inventory, always be analyzing deals, know what you are looking for, so then you are ready to strike whenevr the right opportunity presents itself.As a house hacker, I would be looking at metrics like your Cash-on-Cash return instead and monthly cash flow or mortgage paydown over putting all the emphasis on a particular cap rate.

For those of you who are investing in hot/expensive markets, how much of an emphasis do you place in positive cash flow, and why?

Your CPA is looking for ways to minimize your taxable income, lowering your tax bill.How do you decide where to put more emphasis?

Sounds to me like you are doing all the right things, but maybe need to put a larger emphasis on building a strong team that can support you as you get going.  

We do everything from BRRRR, duplex rentals, STR, and multi-family - with an emphasis on value add properties.There's also a REIA meetup that meets downtown once a month.

@Steve K.The seller puts a lot of emphasis on non-refundable, which is why I'm skepticalAnd this emphasis has made the story unusual

Emphasis here on the words "tends to" ... context is still a major driver of needs, meaning they won't always make these choices4.

For our next venture we are looking into picking up SFHs, with the emphasis on cash-flow positivity.

Retail will have more emphasis on your DSCR - meaning CASHFLOW.Best of luck.