Planning, such as selling in a year with lower overall income or using a 1031 exchange, can help minimize this tax.

The thing I forgot to mention is that I'm living on a small fixed income.

I work full time in a welding shop to have proof of income, so I'd be able to get my fha loan.

There are certainly other advantages to an LLC vs a sole proprietorship, and personally, I would lean towards operating as an LLC or corporation in most ventures.

If I don’t get good applicants ( credit/income) by day 7 on market= price drop. 

HI John, You can always start off by house hacking meaning you live in one UNIT or ROOM and renting out the other vacant units/rooms to offset your monthly mortgage payment.There are several ways to run and make sure you are maximizing your rental income while keeping your living expense as low as possible.

Make sure you are saving at least 10% of your income to purchase.

No income this year, but did have expenses, so I want to capture the loss and carry it to 2021. 

One hint to to start searching for owners with "LLC" or "Corp" or "Inc" in the names.

My goal is to build a portfolio that provides as much income as possible within the next 5 years, so I am thinking STR.