Thanks to Entropy for the tip on lendingclub (http://lendingclub.com). I've started investing with them this week. Here's a brief outline of my experience:
Custom service is top notch. Within 24 hours of opening an account, I got a call from one of their service representatives to go over the ins and outs of the site. They're fairly candid about what types of loans tend to do well, what has underperformed in the past (Student loan repayments), expected default rates, etc.
The website is great - you can auto assemble portfolios based on the size of the initial investment and a customized risk profile, then add and subtract loans you do/don't want.
Instead of funding by linking with your bank account, you can fund via paypal and invest with a credit card. There are no fees associated with this. You can leverage this for additional returns by using a cashback card, for example the Fidelity 2% American Express cashback cards:
http://personal.fidelity.com/products/ch...card.shtml
Is anyone else using this site? I've never seen anything like it, considering the fact that you can fund your account with a cashback card. I've been using Kiva for 3-4 years now so I'm familiar with the layout, but the rates they're giving borrowers are actually significantly better than Kiva, and the loans aren't that much bigger.
Custom service is top notch. Within 24 hours of opening an account, I got a call from one of their service representatives to go over the ins and outs of the site. They're fairly candid about what types of loans tend to do well, what has underperformed in the past (Student loan repayments), expected default rates, etc.
The website is great - you can auto assemble portfolios based on the size of the initial investment and a customized risk profile, then add and subtract loans you do/don't want.
Instead of funding by linking with your bank account, you can fund via paypal and invest with a credit card. There are no fees associated with this. You can leverage this for additional returns by using a cashback card, for example the Fidelity 2% American Express cashback cards:
http://personal.fidelity.com/products/ch...card.shtml
Is anyone else using this site? I've never seen anything like it, considering the fact that you can fund your account with a cashback card. I've been using Kiva for 3-4 years now so I'm familiar with the layout, but the rates they're giving borrowers are actually significantly better than Kiva, and the loans aren't that much bigger.