45-Day & 180-Day Deadlines

The 45-day identification period is arguably the most critical deadline in a 1031 exchange. Starting from the day your relinquished property sale closes, you have exactly 45 calendar days to identify potential replacement properties in writing.

This identification must be delivered to your qualified intermediary (or another party involved in the exchange) and must describe the properties unambiguously. For real estate, this typically means providing the street address. For DST interests, it means specifying the exact offering name and sponsor.

The 45-day period runs continuously, including weekends and holidays. If day 45 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or federal holiday, you cannot extend to the next business day. The deadline is the deadline.

The 180-day exchange period is the total time you have—from the close of your relinquished property sale—to acquire your replacement property. This 180-day window includes the 45-day identification period; they run concurrently, not sequentially.

In practical terms, after you submit your identification on or before day 45, you have the remaining days (up to day 180) to close on one or more of the properties you identified. You must acquire replacement property with a value equal to or greater than your relinquished property to fully defer your gain.

If you identified multiple properties, you can close on one, some, or all of them—as long as the total value meets your deferral goals and you close within the 180-day window.

There is an important caveat to the 180-day rule: your exchange must be completed by the earlier of 180 days or your tax return due date (including extensions) for the year in which you sold the relinquished property.

For example, if you sold your property in December and have a standard April 15 tax filing deadline, you may have fewer than 180 days to complete the exchange. In these cases, requesting a tax filing extension can preserve your full 180-day window.