Once you've gained enough experience, you can transition to more BRRRR projects.

Very large out-of-pocket medical expenses are also part of this game.Balance gains and losses on your investments.

Initially, the properties that I buy in another market don't have to cash flow a lot, my metric is $150, as I'm focused on the long term gain when they're paid off  and I have a W2 and am also a realtor.

This allows you to invest in another property while maintaining the asset.Alternatively, a 1031 exchange lets you defer capital gains taxes by reinvesting in higher-yielding or diversified properties. 1031 has limitations.

You would gain some much insight just by starting there. 

In any market that you're looking into from OOS, it's very important to work with an investor friendly agent so you're able to gain the right insight on the different areas and the risks involved.

I took a pause and finished my bachelors and stabilized my family since then.

You can sometimes gain a lot of info from those calls.

If you can attend local investor meetups, that’s a great way to gain market insight and connect with reliable people.It’s also smart to start small with a couple of flips to test the waters, and make sure you understand the local market dynamics before scaling up.Good luck with your expansion! 

So yes you can exchange it to save capital gains taxes on $266k plus 19 years of depreciation recapture.