John has just graduated from State University. He owes $35,000 in college loans, but he does not have a job yet. The college loan company has agreed to give John a break on a deferred-payment plan that works as follows. John will not have to repay his loan for 5 years. During this “grace period” the loan obligation will compound at 4% per year. For the next 5 years, a monthly payment will be required, and the interest rate will be 0.5% per month. What will be John’s monthly payment over the 60-month repayment period?

An external consultant recommends that a plant installs a bank of capacitors for power factor correction. this will reduce the peak electrical demand charges by an average of 93 kw every month. the plant current pays $13 per kw in peak demand charges. the capacitor bank will include 223 kw of fixed capacitors, and 183 of variable capacitors. the fixed capacitors cost $59 per kw, and the variable capacitors will cost $65 per kw. the consultant charges 21% of the equipment costs to install the capacitors. because this project will reduce the demand for the electric utility, they are prepared to provide a one-time rebate of $42 per kw of reduced demand. what is the simple payback period for this project (in years)?