Most 1031 calculators stop at the tax bill. This one keeps going: it checks your replacement property value and debt against what you sold, because a valid exchange can still be a partly taxable one.
Enter round numbers. Nothing is sent anywhere — the math runs in your browser and updates as you type.
Depreciation means the total you've deducted over the holding period, not one year's worth.
Long-term capital gain rate is set by total taxable income including the gain — a large sale often pushes into the top band by itself.
This is the number most sellers underestimate, because they think in terms of the headline capital gain rate alone.
| Unrecaptured Section 1250 gain at 25%On depreciation taken | $0 |
| Federal capital gainOn the appreciation above basis | $0 |
| Net investment income tax3.8% surtax on the gain | $0 |
| State taxApplied to the full gain | $0 |
| Total tax if you sell outright | $0 |
That's an effective 0% of your realized gain.
Gross equity is your sales price less costs of sale and the loan payoff. The difference between these two columns is the entire economic case for an exchange.
An exchange can be perfectly valid and still be partly taxable. Deferral is only complete if the replacement property carries at least as much value and at least as much debt, with no cash taken out.
Enter what you intend to buy. Leave at defaults if you're still deciding — the verdict will show you the floor you need to clear.
The trap that catches people: paying off a large loan and replacing it with a small one creates mortgage boot even when every dollar of cash goes into the new property. Adding outside cash to the purchase can offset it. Reducing debt without replacing the value cannot.
Net adjusted basis = purchase price + capital improvements − depreciation taken. Realized gain = sales price − net adjusted basis − costs of sale.
Unrecaptured §1250 gain is the lesser of depreciation taken or total realized gain, taxed at a maximum 25% rate. The remaining gain is taxed at the long-term capital gain rate you selected. Many calculators apply 25% to the full depreciation figure regardless of gain, which overstates tax on a low-gain sale.
Net investment income tax of 3.8% under §1411 applies to the full recognized gain when modified AGI exceeds the statutory threshold. Those thresholds are fixed by 2013 statute and are not indexed for inflation.
State tax is applied to the full gain at a flat rate. Several states, California among them, tax capital gain as ordinary income, so the correct entry is your marginal rate. This is an approximation — state treatment of depreciation recapture and nonresident sourcing varies.
Boot follows the Form 8824 netting convention. Cash boot = proceeds you withdraw, plus any exchange equity the purchase is too small to absorb (constructive cash received). Mortgage boot = debt paid off − new debt, reduced by outside cash you add to the purchase — cash paid offsets debt relief, but never offsets cash received. Recognized gain is the lesser of total boot or realized gain, and it fills the 25% unrecaptured §1250 layer first before the capital gain rate applies.
Federal figures reflect IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 for tax year 2026. This is an estimate for planning discussion, not a tax computation. Your return is prepared by your CPA on the actual facts.
The free briefing covers what has to be in place before escrow closes, the 45- and 180-day clocks, the three identification rules, and the debt-replacement trap this calculator just measured.
Depreciation you deducted reduced ordinary income while you held the property, so on sale that portion is pulled back as unrecaptured Section 1250 gain at a maximum 25% rate rather than the long-term capital gain rate. It's capped at the lesser of depreciation taken or total gain — a low-gain sale doesn't recapture the full figure.
Any value received in an exchange that isn't like-kind property. It shows up three ways: buying down in value, carrying less debt on the replacement than was paid off, or pulling cash out. Boot is taxable up to the amount of realized gain, which is how an exchange ends up valid but only partly deferred.
No — it defers it. The gain carries into the basis of the replacement property and comes due on a later taxable sale. Whether deferring is right depends on your holding period ahead, your estate plan, and what those dollars would be doing in the meantime. Deferral is a tool, not automatically the answer.
Forty-five calendar days from closing to identify replacement property in writing, and 180 days to close. Both run from the same date, both include weekends and holidays, and neither is extendable. The identification is the deadline that quietly ends most failed exchanges — the 45-day identification walkthrough covers the rules and the form.
Bring your numbers to a 30-minute review. Where you are in the timeline, what has to happen next, and a straight read on whether the exchange is on track.
Book a 30-minute review → Not there yet? Start with the 45-day identification rules.