I am looking to purchase real estate for both investment purpose as well as to offset as much tax liability as possible. 

A couple developers we work with skip LIHTC and the tax credits and go the route of impact funds to help alongside other debt and sometimes equity. 

To really know if a 1031 exchange is worth it for you, you first must find out what your net gain is and subtract state and federal taxes from that.

@Daniel MadhavapallilYou should hire a tax professional. 

The tax paid from your lending proceeds should be the equivalent of your tax rate I would think.

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago - Points of Interest (p. 6)Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago - ABCs of Figuring Interest (p. 2)Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond - The Federal Reserve Today (p. 14)Federal Reserve Bank of St.

Hence the lot on which the house resided was taxed at a 45% discount based on actual value, while the tennis lot was taxed at about 4 times what it should have been by value. 

There are many tax accountants on Bigger Pockets that can help you with your situation. 

If your friends have a rental they should hire a tax professional. 

I'm going to reiterate what's already been mentioned above, but I'm going to actually give you examples of why it's relevant to you to find a U.S. tax professional.1 - You're going to need to file U.S. taxes once you have property down here, there's federal filings, state filings, and sometimes local filings too2 - Tons of tax treaties between the U.S. and Canada that are easy to miss and can cost you a lot of money (important one with rentals - effectively connected income - if the professional you talk to doesn't know what this is, run away)3 - The amount of days you spend in the U.S. needs to be tracked and if you go over a threshold, all of your worldwide income could be taxable by the U.S.4 - Selling real property means up to 15% of your sales proceeds might not be available to you for years (FIRPTA)5 - Lots of nuance at the state and local levels, which both want to take as much money from you as possibleMain takeaway here is that you should find a U.S. based tax person.