As Chris mentioned it works the same, however, the tax credits and incentives may be different for a primary home vs a rental.

Even with $0 down I may be able to cover the mortgage with BAH from the military but then I'm concerned about all the other costs (CAPEX, PM costs, regular maintenance, taxes, etc.).

I'm also pretty sure that 2 of the tenants are getting government assistance and I think they are longer term tenants.After taxes, insurance and with the owner paying for heat and water the owner claims it is netting $20,000 per year.

When you price out the Principle interest taxes insurance and any HOA the rents in most states won't cover the payment unless you have BIG down payment or equity. 

I paid him several thousands of $ - well above the $600 tax threshold.

If not the swap, the non-profit might instead offer as much as 1.25x the value in cash, in which case I might consider selling or could just keep it for now (taxes are virtually zero).Does anyone have insight or suggestions on commercial real estate that could help inform this decision?

And are there additional taxes that Arlington County levies on AirBNB operators? 

And it is tax deductible.

Why MIS is so unpopular method to defer tax??

Was thinking rent out our unit, do another another live in flip, live there for 2 years to avoid the tax hit, then sell it….Anyone have any creative suggestions?