I completely get where you’re coming from; a lot of investors start out in jobs that don’t give them the freedom or purpose they want, and real estate becomes the vehicle that changes that.

And, since you'd only be renting out rooms in the main living area, it would still all count as your primary residence sale - $250K of profit tax-free, and no need to do a 1031 exchange.If you were going to have more than the max in tax-free profit, or maybe build an ADU or something like that, you could separate the rented areas out and even depreciate them for tax purposes.

Hi Wayne, are you looking to retain your Houston portfolio as rentals, or are you looking to sell the properties to investors for rental purposes? 

With a revocable trust, your mom still owns the property for tax purposes, so there’s no immediate gift or capital gains tax, and you could take over later as a beneficiary.

The good thing is LLC/partnerships are flexible and you can draw up the terms between the two of you to accomplish your purposes.  

Also consider if the LOS will adversely affect STR status for tax purposes. 

I wrote the above for informational purposes.

The interest on the refinanced loan can still be deductible, as long as the funds are used for business or investment purposes, like buying another rental property.Since you’ve owned both properties for decades, your depreciation basis is likely pretty low, so a future sale would trigger large capital gains and depreciation recapture.

Anonymity/privacy, tax purposes, legal protection, etc. 

That’s a solid move — taking a property most would overlook and turning it into both a profitable and purpose-driven asset.We’ve been doing something similar through our Home Asset Conversion model, helping property owners reposition underperforming real estate into veteran and senior shared housing — with long-term leases, stable cash flow, and huge community impact.Sober living, senior living, and veteran housing all share that sweet spot: high demand, low supply, and mission-based investing that still hits strong numbers.Curious — did you self-fund the rehab or structure it with a partner/investor model?