P2P lending - where's best?

lovemunkey187

What is P2P lending?
And how does it work?

p2pinvestor

Worth reading ......

moneysavingexpert.com/savings/peer-to-peer-lending

DiggerUK

There was a time when people used to put their heads in the mouths of tigers. The tigers were tame and trained not to rip your face off, unlike p2p platforms..._

p2pinvestor

Have you had a bad experience?

DiggerUK

Anybody who exercises due diligence, especially the reading of the small print, finds it difficult to have a bad experience.

It's not the FAQ's that investors in p2p need answered, it's the questions not in the FAQ's. Anybody who can't figure out the questions best leave investments alone..._

p2pinvestor

"Anybody who exercises due diligence, especially the reading of the small print, finds it difficult to have a bad experience"

Although I agree to a certain extent about reading the small print however some investors are experiencing unforeseen situations on default loans (posted on other forums). It seems that investors have been misled with incorrect information. On one loan it appears that they didn't even get some of the security which they promised lenders that they would have. There have been unreliable valuations on properties. When the loan gets into trouble (and many do), magically the valuation seems to been vastly different.

DiggerUK

No, they are not misled......that is the one thing the FCA safeguard against.
Most information is available, even without asking platforms directly, on their sites. It's just that the sites are an obscurantist exercise that qualifies the authors for a job at the Circumlocution Office.
It's a classic sales reps tactic, shout loud about potential benefits, whisper about the dangers, point out as little as possible..._

agent69

p2pinvestor wrote: »

Anyone invested with Assetz Capital? Thincats or Lendinvest?

I'm with AC, TC and a few others. They all have some good points, and some drawbacks.

Minimum investment with TC is £1000 a go, which puts a lot of people off. I keep away from the interest only loans and over a 3 year period haven't done too bad. TC had a few high profile defaults in the early days, but things appear to have settled down a bit. I find the investors in TC to be the most knowledgeable of all the platforms, and the Q&A can get interesting. Deal flow is good, as are rates.

I had great plans for AC, but deal flow is consistently poor. The promise of jam tomorrow has worked a bit thin, all of which is a shame because they could be my favourite. Rates are going down, for no apparent improvement in security. I'm in several of the defaulted loans, but they are asset secured, so it's a question of whether you will get full recovery or not. I've only had 2 defaults where the situation is reasonably clear: the furniture man repaid 100%, the plumber probably 50%. SM is currently very fluid.

I'm also in RS and SS. I like RS but it takes a lot of effort to monitor the markets and invest when rates are high. Getting out is difficult and costs money. SS pays 12% and is bid and forget. Trouble is it's all property, and I don't like getting over committed in that sector. SM is very fluid at present, but possible less so when the current tranche of big loans go live.

agent69

p2pinvestor wrote: »

It seems that investors have been misled with incorrect information. On one loan it appears that they didn't even get some of the security which they promised lenders that they would have. There have been unreliable valuations on properties. When the loan gets into trouble (and many do), magically the valuation seems to been vastly different.

I think the instances where people might have been misled are very few and far between. That said, I think most of the major platforms have had the odd high profile default, whether it be aboriginal art, scrap metal, plumbing or aircraft maintenance.

Valuation of assets is a fickle business at best and you need to look carefully at the basis on which the assessment was made. Also the valuation if the loan defaults in 12 months time could be vastly different from the value today.

I personally steer clear of loans backed by the debtor book or stock, as these can quickly disappear. I am generally happy with property, provided the valuation is in a fire sale situation and not as a going concern.

MarkFromCornwall

DiggerUK wrote: »

There was a time when people used to put their heads in the mouths of tigers. The tigers were tame and trained not to rip your face off, unlike p2p platforms..._

I've been on FC for over five years and have made a reasonable return. So it's an unusually patient tiger!