Been thinking of a 1031 myself, and your thread highlights my biggest concern with it, buying into a bad deal just for the tax benefits.

The benefit of presenting the property to HML first is he/she may be able to confirm if it's actually a deal or not.

@Justin Y.If to you "tax shelter" means any method of reducing taxable income, then you may be focused on the wrong reason to invest in residential rental real estate.There are three advantages to investing in rental property:  Appreciation, Cash flow, and Tax benefits. 

Essentially this tells you the return you will earn if you buy this property un-levered (no debt/all cash) and make no changes to the property.

He has received tax benefits from this over the years, which he would need to pay back if used on an investment property.

It sounds like they are trying to drum up business for candle/Tupperware/essential oil/Mary Kay parties, (the list is endless) or religious activities where all might not be welcome.   

One major benefit from that will also be the ability to utilize one management company and if you ever do visit the properties it is an easier process.

Here's my current issue:only make about 60k (assuming that would only qualify me for about 270k)almost out of debt(maybe 5k)essentially no money in the bank (spending it all on debt)land around me is ridiculously expensive(MA)(have a VA loan)wanted to know if this concept would work1a.

I think you are very wise to leverage the well-deserved housing benefits from the military.  

In NJ, I think it would be essential to have your initial lease written by a lawyer.