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Colorado Securities Commissioner, Fred Joseph has determined that TIC interests sold in the state of Colorado by Mile High Capital and Replacement Property Solutions are considered securities rather than real estate.  Replacement Property Solutions was the qualified intermediary arm of Mile High Capital, a real estate investment firm.  Both companies have been closed by the State and their principals indicted for securities fraud.

A TIC (Tenant-In-Common) interest is a small ownership slice of a large property.  In 2002 the IRS ruled that TIC interests qualify for 1031 exchanges.  This means an investor can sell a piece of investment property and buy a partial interest in a large property, such as an office building or an apartment complex.  Prior to the IRS ruling, there was confusion as to whether TICs were treated as real estate, or as partnership interests (which are not allowed as 1031 exchange replacement property).

Around the end of most years I write a column predicting what you are likely to see in the 1031 arena over the following 12 months. I recently spent an afternoon in a meeting with one of the people responsible for Section 1031 of the tax code for the IRS. Based on that meeting, what follows are my predictions of changes to look for during the next year.

Tightening of the requirements for qualified intermediaries -The IRS knows that they have problems with what they call “Accom-modating Accommodators.” These people are qualified intermediaries (QI) who are pretty loose with the requirements of a 1031 exchange. The problems range from these QIs regularly allowing clients to do 1031 exchanges on fix-and-flips, to their allowing clients to change their identification letter after the 45th day. The IRS knows they are out there, but it is not always easy for them to tell who these intermediaries are.

The market for fractional ownership of commercial real estate (popularly known as Tenants-In-Common or TICs) is expanding its reach -- and look out!

These new ownership programs allow individuals, who normally may not have access to the institutional real estate market, to buy interests in large scale commercial real estate. In March, 2002, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2002-22 which set forth the conditions and guidelines under which the IRS will allow a small group of single owners to invest into large real estate projects such as: office buildings, apartment complexes, shopping centers, even the neighborhood Wal-Mart store. But there are some inherent drawbacks, such as no established secondary market for selling your TIC interest, resulting in a less liquid investment.

In today’s economic environment, an increasingly common question we get is how to structure a 1031 exchange for the seller of a property when the buyer wants the seller to carry back a contract in connection with the sale. We started advising our clients on this very issue over five years ago—this year the IRS said we were right!

Say you are selling your property, which is free and clear, for $200,000. The buyer offers to pay $50,000 at closing and wants you to carry a contract for the balance of $150,000. You have a $75,000 gain on this transaction and would prefer to do a 1031 exchange and want to know the procedures.