Financial Modeling
Returns Analysis
IRR, MOIC, cash-on-cash, TVPI/DPI/RVPI, and the sensitivity-and-stress-testing layer above them — the metric vocabulary institutional LPs and investment committees actually use.
No single return metric describes a real estate deal. IRR captures time value but assumes reinvestment at the IRR itself. MOIC captures total multiple but ignores hold period. Cash-on-cash describes Year-1 yield but says nothing about exit. TVPI / DPI / RVPI describe a fund's distribution status but not the underlying assets. Institutional underwriting carries all four simultaneously, and the sensitivity layer above them — Exit Cap × Rent Growth, stressed DSCR, Monte Carlo — is what turns numbers into an investment thesis.
These seven articles walk that stack from the deal level up. Start with the IRR calculator if you are sizing a single deal. Start with TVPI/DPI/RVPI if you are reading an LP report. Each piece includes the formula, institutional benchmarks, and the common practitioner mistakes.
7 articles
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IRR Calculator and Formula for Real Estate: A Practitioner's Guide
Free multi-period IRR calculator for commercial real estate — year-by-year cash flows, exit sale, IRR + MOIC + equity multiple + cash-on-cash on one screen. Plus the formula, worked $25M multifamily example, 2026 asset-class benchmarks, and seven mistakes practitioners make.
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Cash-on-Cash Return Calculator and Formula: Levered vs Unlevered
Free cash-on-cash return calculator with a levered/unlevered toggle and a multi-year mode for Year-1, stabilized, and average CoC across a five-year hold. Plus asset-class benchmark bands, the 2026 negative-leverage signal, and the CoC-vs-IRR-vs-cap-rate comparison.
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IRR Formula and the Reinvestment-Assumption Question: A Practitioner's Guide to IRR, MIRR, and XIRR
The IRR formula derived from NPV, the reinvestment-assumption controversy resolved, MIRR mechanics, and a CRE worked example showing a 7.5-point IRR-MIRR spread. Why the 2026 rate environment makes the spread matter.
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Equity Multiple and MOIC: When the Multiple Matters More Than IRR
Equity multiple is MOIC under a different name. The formula, a worked $10M CRE example, the IRR-vs-MOIC tradeoff matrix, TVPI reconciliation, and the DPI-compression-and-extended-holds context making MOIC matter more than IRR right now.
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Cash-on-Cash Return: Levered vs Unlevered, and the 2026 Negative-Leverage Reality
Cash-on-cash is the levered yield on equity; its unlevered twin equals the cap rate at acquisition. The formula, a worked $50M CRE example, the 2026 negative-leverage table, and why the 8–12% folklore is wrong for the modal 2024–2026 deal.
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TVPI, DPI, and RVPI: Fund-Level Return Metrics for LPs
The TVPI = DPI + RVPI identity, fund-level formulas, a worked $80M CRE fund lifecycle showing year-by-year evolution of all three multiples, the j-curve, net-vs-gross deltas, and 2026 DPI compression.
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IRR Sensitivity Analysis and Stress Testing: A Practitioner's Guide
The four techniques ranked — sensitivity, scenario, stress test, Monte Carlo — with Excel walkthroughs, the canonical Exit Cap × Rent Growth matrix, Fed 2026 severely adverse stress scenario, and Excel-native Monte Carlo.
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