Notes as a “boring” complement to passive indexing

People often talk about keeping things simple: broad diversification, low costs, and staying the course. That mindset has served many people well. One topic I don’t see discussed as often is income-producing notes as a *small* complement to a traditional index-based portfolio. Not as a replacement, and not as something to actively trade, but as another form of predictable cash flow. At a high level, notes can be thought of as: * contractual cash flow rather than market-priced assets * returns driven more by payment performance than market sentiment * something that can sit closer to the “fixed income” side of a portfolio Obviously, they come with their own risks (underwriting, servicing, concentration), and they require discipline to keep them simple and low-cost. But conceptually, you are tied to a physical asset. Banks leverage trillions at scale, why not you individually? (no management, property taxes, repairs) Curious how others here think about notes, private credit, or similar cash-flow assets within a long-term, low-maintenance investing framework.