Business economics
Break-even analysis: formula and worked example
Calculate break-even sales from fixed costs and contribution margin, then test pricing, capacity and cash timing.
Make the numbers work
Money
Understand borrowing costs, debt service and cash flow with transparent assumptions.
The reading room
Search the journalBusiness economics · Entrepreneurship · Cost of capital · Financial fundamentals · Business planning · Economic briefing
Browse the selection at your own pace.
Entrepreneurship
Startup costs: build a budget before opening
Separate opening costs from recurring expenses and cash reserves. A worked startup budget shows where funding gaps appear.
Business economics
Business valuation: prepare the evidence first
Organize earnings, assets, dependencies and liabilities before discussing business valuation with an adviser.
Cost of capital
Factor rate vs. APR: why 1.25 is not 25% APR
Learn to distinguish a repayment multiplier from an annualized borrowing cost.
Financial fundamentals
Debt service coverage ratio: a practical DSCR guide
Understand the cash-flow coverage calculation, its limits, and how to use it without treating it as an approval score.
Business planning
Cash-flow forecast: build a 13-week business plan
Build a weekly cash-flow forecast, separate receipts from revenue, test a downside case, and download your planning worksheet.
Economic briefing
Fed household survey: income, wealth and debt
The October 9 family-finances release provides household context. Business owners still need a separate repayment forecast.
The working notebook
Put the reading to work.
A useful decision starts with evidence, a clear assumption and a question you can answer.
Compare usable proceeds and all required payments.
Read: Factor rate vs. APR: why 1.25 is not 25% APRA factor rate is not an annual percentage rate.
Read: Debt service coverage ratio: a practical DSCR guideA cash forecast is a working model, not a prediction.
Read: Cash-flow forecast: build a 13-week business planContinue the conversation
From an idea to an operating business
Entrepreneurship
Business plans, startup budgets, customer evidence and acquisition decisions for people building their next venture.
Evidence you can work withResearch & Lists
Original working frameworks, measurement guides and public data resources for a better-informed business decision.
Capital, operations and enterpriseBusiness
How businesses fund a project, protect liquidity and turn a plan into an operating decision.
Property as an operating decisionReal Estate
Project financing, owner-occupied property and questions to ask before a long-term commitment.