How Long Do I Have to Complete a 1031 Exchange?

You have 45 calendar days after your sale closes to identify replacement property in writing and 180 calendar days after the sale to receive it. Both periods start on the same day and run at the same time, so the 180 days include the first 45. The 180-day period ends sooner if your tax return for the year of the sale is due first, unless you file an extension. Weekends and holidays do not move either deadline, and only IRS disaster relief can extend them.

Under the 1031 statute, missing either deadline disqualifies that replacement property. You may still defer part of the gain if other qualifying property is properly identified and received on time. For how a 1031 exchange fits with other tax rules for property owners, see tax benefits available to homeowners.

How are the 45 and 180 days counted?

The clock starts on the date you transfer the property you are selling, which is normally the closing date. The day after closing is day 1, and each period ends at midnight on its last day. If you sell more than one property in the same exchange on different dates, both periods start on the date of the first sale.

The IRS says these time limits cannot be extended for hardship; the only exception is disaster relief, covered below. Because day 45 in this example is a Saturday, plan to deliver the notice by Friday, July 24, when your intermediary's office is open. If day 180 falls on a weekend or holiday, schedule the purchase closing for an earlier business day.

When does your tax return cut the 180 days short?

For individuals who file on a calendar year, 2026 returns are due April 15, 2027. Any sale that closes on or after October 18, 2026 has a 180th day that falls after April 15, 2027.

Example: your sale closes Friday, November 20, 2026. Day 45 is Monday, January 4, 2027, and day 180 is Wednesday, May 19, 2027. Without an extension, your exchange period ends April 15, 2027, and you lose 34 days. If you request an extension with Form 4868 by April 15, your return is due October 15, 2027, and you keep the full period through May 19.

The extension is only for filing. Any tax you owe for 2026 is still due April 15. A business that files on a fiscal year, or an entity with a different due date, uses its own return due date in place of April 15.

How do you identify replacement property within 45 days?

The identification must be in writing, signed by you, and delivered by the deadline to your qualified intermediary (QI), the company holding your sale proceeds, or to the seller of the replacement property. Delivery to your own attorney, real estate agent, or accountant does not count. Describe each property clearly, by street address, legal description, or a distinguishable name such as "Mayfair Apartment Building." You can revoke or change the list in a signed writing delivered the same way before day 45 ends. Any property you actually buy within the 45 days counts as identified.

You can name more than one property under either of two rules:

• Three-property rule: up to three properties, whatever their value.
• 200 percent rule: any number of properties, as long as their combined value on day 45 is no more than twice the value of what you sold.

If your list breaks both rules, it is treated as if you identified nothing, except for property bought within the 45 days. The one way back is the 95 percent rule: you must buy identified properties worth at least 95 percent of the combined value of everything on the list.

Example: you sell a rental for $500,000. A list of five properties totaling $950,000 passes the 200 percent rule because $950,000 is under $1,000,000. A list of five totaling $1,200,000 fails both rules, so the exchange works only if you buy at least $1,140,000 of those properties ($1,200,000 times 0.95).

The property you finally receive must be substantially the same as what you identified. How to complete a 1031 exchange shows where the identification notice fits among the other documents.

What if you cannot find or close on a property in time?

• You identify nothing by day 45. The exchange ends. If your exchange agreement allows it, the QI can release your money after day 45, and the sale is taxed as an ordinary sale.
• You identify property but cannot buy any of it. The regulations generally lock the money with the QI until the exchange period ends. The exception: your agreement lists a material event outside your control, such as the seller of the identified property backing out, and that event happens after day 45. The gain is taxable.
• You buy some identified property but not all. Cash left after the purchases is taxable to the extent of your gain.

If you find the property you want before you can sell, a reverse 1031 exchange lets you buy first. An exchange accommodation titleholder buys and holds the new property for you, and 45-day and 180-day limits run from the day it takes title. You cannot buy in your own name and set this up afterward. Because the identification deadline is fixed, line up your QI before closing; whether you need an intermediary explains why the QI must be in place first.

Can a disaster extend the deadlines?

Yes, when the IRS announces tax relief for a specific disaster. Relief usually follows a federally declared disaster. For declarations made after July 24, 2025, the IRS can also grant relief for a qualifying state-declared disaster when the governor requests it; check the IRS announcement for the deadlines it covers. For federally declared disasters, Rev. Proc. 2018-58 sets the 1031 rule: a 45-day or 180-day deadline that falls on or after the disaster date moves back 120 days or to the end of the relief period in the IRS announcement, whichever is later. The postponement cannot run past your return's due date, including extensions, or past one year.

If you are an affected taxpayer named in the announcement, a 45-day or 180-day deadline that falls within its relief period is postponed under the general relief, even if your sale closed after the disaster date. For the 120-day postponement, your sale must have closed on or before the disaster date, and you must either be an affected taxpayer named in the IRS announcement or have trouble meeting a deadline because of the disaster. Examples the IRS lists include:

• Either property is in the covered disaster area.
• Your QI, lender, title insurer, or settlement attorney has its main office in the covered area.
• A lender will not fund because flood or hazard insurance is unavailable after the disaster.
• Exchange documents or land records were destroyed.

A day-45 deadline that passed before the disaster is also extended if a property you identified is substantially damaged. A disaster declaration alone does nothing; the relief starts only when the IRS issues a news release or other guidance for that disaster. Filing Form 4868 keeps your return's April due date from cutting the postponement short.