Founder
Why NJL Design Lab exists.
I built NJL Design Lab to make financial planning, real estate analysis, and everyday decision-making more honest, more structured, and more useful.
Hi, I’m Nic.
I’m a U.S. Navy veteran, business analyst, and program manager working toward financial independence while building tools that help people think more clearly about money and time.
I started NJL Design Lab because the tools I needed didn’t exist. The calculators were too simple. The spreadsheets assumed too much. The articles explained concepts without helping anyone actually apply them to a real situation.
So I built my own. FI Architect started as a personal spreadsheet. Deal Analyzer came out of underwriting my own real estate deals. The blog is where I work through ideas and share what I’m learning in real time.
We at NJL Design Lab are focused on making complex decisions easier, providing clarity through the fog, and designing the tools that make you achieve your goals.
We love feedback and requests for support so please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
The Approach
Built to model the real world.
Most FI tools show smooth curves and optimistic projections. That’s not how money actually works. The tools at NJL Design Lab are built to stress-test assumptions, surface tradeoffs, and make the decision path visible.
FI Architect incorporates US progressive tax modeling, real estate cash-flow analysis, Monte Carlo simulations, and dynamic asset-allocation glide paths. You can run scenarios for mini-retirements, Rent vs. Buy comparisons, and tax-efficient withdrawal sequencing — and see how each assumption changes the outcome in real time.
Deal Analyzer came out of underwriting actual real estate deals. The goal is simple: surface the numbers that matter, then make the next decision easier.
Background
The short version
- I care about clarity over noise.
- I care about useful tools over pretty promises.
- I care about publishing things that actually help.
- I care about building a business that compounds over time.
Tools
Built to do real work.
Tools designed to make real decisions easier — from scenario planning to deal analysis.
Articles
Written to actually help.
The articles are meant to explain the thinking, not just the answer.
Systems
Routines that compound.
The systems layer is about the habits, workflows, and decisions that make long-term progress easier.
Ready to start?
If you’re here to explore the tools, read the articles, or get in touch about a project, you can start wherever makes the most sense.