Corporate Investigation Service Break-Even Analysis: $102K/Month

Fixed costs $15.7K/mo Monthly base load

Contribution margin 71% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $22.0K/mo Zero-profit sales

Break-even timing Month 17 First profit month

Break-even calculator

Use this to test whether monthly revenue covers direct costs and the fixed overhead this service carries.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue is the pool that has to cover direct costs and overhead. $ Low sales High sales Variable expenses These are direct costs that rise as case volume grows. $ Light costs Heavy costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $204,005 $273,833 revenue - $69,828 variable expenses

Margin ratio

74%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead contribution margin has to cover. $ Low overhead High overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which expenses are fixed, and which move with case volume?

Cost classification

Break-even is reliable only when fixed overhead is separated from case-linked spend. Here, $15,650/month of core fixed overhead must be covered before variable items reduce contribution margin.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Secure Office Rent	Fixed	Include $6,500/month in fixed overhead until the lease or facility plan changes.	Treating rent as case-level spend and understating the revenue floor.
Cybersecurity and IT Maintenance	Fixed	Include $2,200/month as baseline operating overhead needed to run secure work.	Counting security tools as per-case spend instead of required monthly infrastructure.
Professional Liability Insurance	Fixed	Include $1,800/month in fixed overhead before calculating profit per case.	Dropping insurance from break-even because it does not attach to one investigation.
Legal Compliance Retainer	Fixed	Include $3,000/month as recurring compliance overhead for regulated investigative work.	Treating compliance as optional until revenue grows.
Data Provider Subscriptions	Variable	Deduct 12% of first-year revenue when calculating contribution margin.	Using gross revenue as if data access had no case-linked drag.
Contract Field Investigators	Variable	Deduct 8% of first-year revenue as volume-linked outside labor.	Classifying contractors like salaried staff and hiding margin pressure.
Travel and Field Research Costs	Variable	Deduct 5% of first-year revenue because field activity rises with case volume.	Budgeting travel as flat even when fraud work increases.
Salaried Investigator Hiring	Semi-fixed	Add salary in steps as capacity expands, such as Senior Investigators rising from 2.0 to 3.0 FTE after the first year.	Spreading new hires smoothly across cases instead of modeling capacity jumps.

How does break-even move from a lean Year 1 ramp to the Year 2 base case and Year 3 full case?

Scenario table

Lean Year 1 stays below break-even at about a $34.0k monthly loss, while the Year 2 base case turns positive at $15.5k and Year 3 reaches $83.3k. The swing comes from revenue growing faster than fixed overhead.

Planning cases only. Actual results will move with case mix, billing rates, and staffing.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean Year 1 ramp	$66.2k	$19.2k	$81.0k	71.0%	-$34.0k	Still below break-even, so cash burn remains.
Base Year 2 operating case	$153.7k	$42.3k	$95.9k	72.5%	$15.5k	Above break-even, with a modest cushion.
Full Year 3 scale case	$273.8k	$69.8k	$120.7k	74.5%	$83.3k	Above break-even, with a much wider cushion.

What breaks the break-even plan for this corporate investigation service?

Stress test

Break-even is fragile: a 10% revenue miss, a 10% jump in fixed costs, or a 5-point margin hit all move the line by about $78k to $103k. Year 1 still sits below break-even, so Month 17 matters.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$1,024k	$230k gap	Year 1 revenue is below break-even, so cash stays tight until Month 17.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 10% to $922k.	$1,024k	$102k gap	A small intake miss opens a six-figure gap because fixed costs do not flex.
Fixed-cost pressure	Fixed monthly costs rise 10% to about $800k.	$1,127k	$103k gap	More overhead pushes the break-even line up by about $103k.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise from 29% to 34%.	$1,102k	$78k gap	More travel, records fees, or subcontractors cut contribution margin fast.
Combined pressure	Revenue falls to $922k, variable expenses rise to 34%, and fixed monthly costs rise to about $800k.	$1,113k	$191k gap	When intake slips and costs rise together, the model loses its cushion.

What should a founder verify before locking in the lease, hiring ramp, and Year 1 marketing spend for a corporate investigation service?

Founder checklist

Don’t sign the lease or hire the core team until you can show real pipeline, a 71% contribution margin, and cash to reach Month 16. This model reaches break-even in Month 17, so the opening book of work has to be real, not hopeful.

1Pipeline proof$1.5K CAC

Verify signed retainers or active project demand can support the $45K Year 1 marketing test before you scale spend.

2Fixed burn$69.0K/mo

Check that rent, software, insurance, compliance, and Year 1 payroll really fit the cash plan before you commit to the office and hires.

3Contribution margin71% CM

Confirm the Year 1 mix still leaves 71% after data subscriptions, contract field investigators, travel, and filing fees, or break-even slips.

4Capacity ramp12.5 hrs/mo

Verify the investigator bench can absorb 12.5 average billable hours per active customer in Year 1 so you do not hire ahead of use.

5Cash reserve$337K

Keep at least $337K ready because cash bottoms out in Month 16 and the $165.5K launch capex can hit before EBITDA turns positive.

6Launch loadMonth 17

Do not greenlight the launch until the opening-month pipeline can carry you to Month 17, since Year 1 EBITDA is still -$408K and payback takes 34 months.