Last Updated on October 7, 2026 by T.J. Fitzgerald
This week’s tip walks through a time-value-of-money calculator so a $5,000 decision in 2026 rests on the numbers instead of a gut read. A note paying $180 a month can look fine until you price the discount, the term left, and what that cash is worth at your target yield.
I open a simple TVM sheet when a seller calls with a performing note. A small Illinois contract once came in near $18,000 with payments that looked steady. Entering the remaining term, the payment, and a target yield instead of the note rate put present value under the asking price. That gap was the negotiation. The calculator did not close anything.
Four inputs cover the walkthrough. Enter the payment, the payments left, and the yield you want, not the coupon on the note. The output is present value, what that stream is worth today. Set the figure next to the price. If the price sits above that value, you are taking a lower yield than planned. Then run a partial. Buy only enough payments to put about $5,000 to work. The calculator shows how many payments that takes and what the leftover tail is worth to the seller. Last, stress the inputs. Shorten the life by a year and see if the decision still holds.
A calculator only prices the cash flow you typed in. Payment history, property value, and borrower stability still need a look before money moves, and a short review with your advisor keeps the result tied to your situation.
Lists at noteinvestors.com/leads are where most of these deals get sourced. The path at noteinvestors.com/broker-opportunity is the zero-capital version of the same math, using a funder’s money and a fee when the yield works. Note Investing Formulas will set these steps beside the partial examples I use.
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