CHICAGO—Whenever major tax reform efforts get underway, investors of all types have to be alert. Even slight changes to existing statutes can either close off or open up opportunities. A year ago, some of those involved in the world of alternative investment feared Congress could eliminate or curtail 1031 property exchanges, which allow taxpayers to defer capital gains and other tax liabilities when trading properties.

But in the tax reform of 2017, Congress stuck to making rate cuts within the existing tax structure, and those feared changes never occurred. Keith Lampi, president and chief operating officer of Oak Brook, IL-based Inland Private Capital Corp., and newly-elected president of the Alternative & Direct Investment Securities Association, tells GlobeSt.com that will help make 2018 an active one for the industry, which has grown much more complex and diverse since 1031 exchange programs became popular.

“There was concern throughout the industry,” he says. “But section 1031 [of the IRS code] wasn't altered or changed in any way. It's still on the books and it's business as usual as a result.”