[LWJ]

I have been selling off since the early 2000's. Paid tax on every one. I have not done a 1031 but would love to do so in the right situation.

Here is my takeaway. And, for the record, I am VERY much still interested in real estate. I am just doing it differently.

1. I started in SFH and duplexes. I self managed and rehabbed. What a grind that was!

2. I moved to 4plexes and larger. The structure of the units is NOT conducive to traditional families. I prefer single people or couples. While I love my children, renting to families is super high maintenance. The yards, carpets, walls, everything gets destroyed. Singles and couples? They are very gentle. Larger, more institutional buildings have cheap, easy landscaping. Often, no grass.

3. I hired property managers. Yes. They are ungodly expensive. BUT, I have my life back! I have had a PM for 15+ years. And guess what? I have the luxury of being a parent. Gone are the 16 hour days that I used to put in. While this was acceptable when I had no children, I have zero interest in this life style now.

I am not some big time gazillionaire. I am a small property owner. I use leverage in a responsible manner and have increased my holdings nicely over the years. I believe that you can invest for capital appreciation (somewhat speculative) or cash flow. The unicorn is when you get both. Oregon has been in a unicorn market for a while. I only buy for cash flow now as the speculative part is just that.

Summary: I think you can do what you enjoy and jettison the crap part of property management / ownership. This is a long-cycle investment. I plan on doing this until I am dead. Because it is fun.