Service · Updated
Broker CIM to Excel: A 4-Tab, SBA-Ready Deal Model in 2 Hours
A broker sends a 60-page CIM, the seller's accountant sends three years of scanned tax returns, and the next step is always the same: a weekend of typing numbers into Excel before you can tell whether the deal is any good. Searchers tell us one scanned packet takes about 15 hours. This is the shortcut, without giving up the checking.
What you send
- The broker's CIM (scanned is fine)
- The seller's Form 1120-S returns, ideally three years
- Any QuickBooks P&L or balance sheet exports
A mutual NDA is accepted when you upload. Files are encrypted and deleted after 30 days, or the same day if you ask.
What you get back
| Tab 1 · Tax return vs. CIM | Every CIM line next to the matching 1120-S line, with the dollar and percentage gap and a ties / review / flag grade. Free on every deal. |
|---|---|
| Tab 2 · Adjusted EBITDA | A waterfall from ordinary business income to adjusted EBITDA, with each add-back sourced to the return, the ledger or the CIM page it came from. |
| Tab 3 · Net working capital | Three years of working capital from Schedule L and a suggested peg for the LOI. |
| Tab 4 · SBA DSCR check | Debt service on the SBA 7(a) loan and seller note, coverage against the 1.25x minimum, a 20% earnings-drop test and editable price, rate and note. |
Click any number and it shows where it came from: the tax return line, the CIM page or the formula. Your lender and investors can check the model the same way.
See it on a real-looking deal
The sample package is a fictional HVAC company: the CIM shows adjusted EBITDA of $1,690,000, the model rebuilt from the tax return finds $1,425,330, and at $6,000,000 the deal still clears the SBA test at 1.72x. Download it and open the workbook.
Before you send a packet
If you want to screen a deal yourself first, start with what to do in the first 48 hours with a CIM, then reconcile the CIM with the 1120-S and run the SBA DSCR calculator. Prefer to build it yourself? Use the free SBA deal model template. Wondering whether ChatGPT can do this? Read ChatGPT and Claude for CIM analysis.
Frequently asked questions
Can you convert a scanned CIM to Excel?
Yes. Scanned PDFs and phone photos of the CIM and tax returns are fine. Send them exactly as the broker sent them.
Is this just OCR or a PDF-to-Excel converter?
No. A converter gives you tables in cells. You get a working model: the CIM checked against the tax return, adjusted EBITDA with sourced add-backs, the working capital peg and the SBA coverage test, with live formulas. A person reviews anything uncertain.
Why not paste the CIM into ChatGPT?
ChatGPT and Claude are good at summarizing a CIM and can even build a spreadsheet, but they can misread scanned tables and don't tie each number to its source page by default, so you still verify every figure yourself. See the full comparison of ChatGPT and Claude for CIM analysis.
How long does it take and what does it cost?
Tab 1 comes back within 2 hours, free, on every deal. The full 4-tab model is $250 per deal with no subscription, and you only pay if you want it after seeing Tab 1.
What if the seller files a 1065 or 1120 instead of an 1120-S?
Send it anyway and mention the form in the deal name. We will tell you before we start whether we can match it the same way.