Question

Your company purchased a vacant lot 3 years ago for $1.2 million and at that time spent $100,000 to convert it into a parking lot, which now generates $120,000/year in revenue. You are considering building a distribution center on the lot with a construction cost of $5 million and an annual OCF of $750,000. Which of these cash flows should be included in a capital budgeting analysis for the distribution center?

I. The $1.2 Million purchase price for the lot
II. The $100,000 conversion cost
III. The $120,000/ year parking revenue
IV. The $5 million construction cost for the distribution center
V. The $750,000/year OCF from the distribution center

a. I and II only
b. I, III, IV only
c. IV, and V only
d. III, IV, and V only
e. ALL of them

Answer 1

The cash flows that should be included in a capital budgeting analysis for the distribution center are:

d. III, IV, and V only

Step-by-step explanation:

a) Data and Calculations:

Parking Lot Distribution Center

Initial investment costs $1.2 million $5 million

Conversion costs 100,000 0

Annual revenue $120,000 $750,000

b) Not all the cash flows should be included in a capital budgeting analysis for the distribution center. The initial investment and conversion costs are sunk costs. The annual revenue from the parking lot becomes an opportunity cost when the lot is converted to a distribution center.