I'm put off by his $2200 "mistake" to be honest.I did think of calling some floor contractors for the hardwood floors and having the rest to a handyman as the rest are pick list items that don't take specialized trade skills, so thanks for that suggestion.

Plus he can trade the other two investment properties in the same way and reinvest the proceeds in NNN properties.

If you raise the purchase price and lower the interest rate the interest portion (which is taxed at ordinary gains tax rate) is traded for (capital gains tax rate 20%) which could be a savings of almost 20% depending on the sellers tax bracket.

I am assuming we'd pay capital gains on the $230k ($730-$500k) but I'm now confused on whether the partial exchange protects me from the significant trade down?

But again, lowering the rate doesn’t help that trend.Is trade war the only hope for buyers hoarding cash and waiting for the opportunity?

The two additional benefits would be that the Land Trust would be easy to tie into any future estate planning you do and you could also add an additional layer of privacy by having your attorney sign as a "nominee trustee" and so your name would only be visible on a private document for the Land Trust protected by attorney-client privilege (so people can't just search you out without paying significant discovery fees.)This is just a brief explanation of this option, so if you want to know more be sure to just reply and I will swing back next time I am on BP.

Talking with other investors, we regularly use multi-family or MF to refer to 3+ units, such as "I'm trying to consolidate my portfolio into larger multis" as a way of saying "I own a lot of 2-3 families and would like to trade them in for a smaller number of 6+ unit buildings"You do have to go by context though.

I definitely get the trade offs you’re talking about.

If you can swing an Airbnb in anyway in Somerville you have instantly doubled or tripled your rental income! 

Hard work in the trades can get you there.