How much should you invest today to receive $250,000 in five years at an 8% discount rate?

To determine how much you should invest today to receive $250,000 in five years at an 8% discount rate, you can use the present value formula. The present value (PV) can be calculated with the formula:

[ PV = \frac{FV}{(1 + r)^n} ]

Where:

• ( FV ) is the future value ($250,000),

• ( r ) is the discount rate (8% or 0.08),

• ( n ) is the number of periods (5 years).

Substituting the values into the formula:

[ PV = \frac{250,000}{(1 + 0.08)^5} ]

Calculate ( (1 + 0.08)^5 ):

[ (1 + 0.08)^5 \approx 1.4693 ]

Then calculate the present value:

[ PV = \frac{250,000}{1.4693} \approx 170,145.80 ]

This calculation shows that to receive $250,000 in five years at an 8% discount rate, you would need to invest approximately $170,145.80 today. This value corresponds to the choice provided, emphasizing that