Investment Recommendations, 1031 exchange

[Grant Dodge]

I know this is a loaded question and responses will be all over the place but looking for any and all recommendations. We currently have an STR property at a lake that we are under contract to sell and will be doing a 1031 exchange. Will have about $600K in cash and $1m in sale value. The primary focus of the 1031 exchange will be to maximize cash on cash return for income as we are about to retire. We live in the Hampton Roads area of VA but open to out of state purchases.

I've been doing so much research I think I have paralysis by analysis at this point! I've been looking between commercial properties, multiple LTR's and STR's. We aren't new to LTR/STR rentals, we have 2 other LTR's and have been doing the STR for 6 years so comfortable with it. Any and all real estate recommendations welcome for maximizing the cash on cash return!

[Arman Ahmed]

Quote from @Grant Dodge:

I know this is a loaded question and responses will be all over the place but looking for any and all recommendations. We currently have an STR property at a lake that we are under contract to sell and will be doing a 1031 exchange. Will have about $600K in cash and $1m in sale value. The primary focus of the 1031 exchange will be to maximize cash on cash return for income as we are about to retire. We live in the Hampton Roads area of VA but open to out of state purchases.

I've been doing so much research I think I have paralysis by analysis at this point! I've been looking between commercial properties, multiple LTR's and STR's. We aren't new to LTR/STR rentals, we have 2 other LTR's and have been doing the STR for 6 years so comfortable with it. Any and all real estate recommendations welcome for maximizing the cash on cash return!

With $600K to deploy and income being the priority, I'd seriously look at small-to-large multifamily in the Midwest before jumping into commercial or another STR. Ohio in particular has some markets where you can still find strong cash flow and reasonable purchase prices, and going out of state is much easier when you have the right local team. At this stage, I'd focus on simple, boring properties that produce consistent income rather than adding more complexity.