@Anonymous wrote:I invested on prosper a few years ago, maybe 2006 or early 2007. I only invested one or two thousand bucks, and it was fun looking up different loans, bidding on them, etc. In the end though, I wound up losing money. The first 6 months everything went swimmingly, but one day I noticed that there was a late payment. A week later, another late payment. Over the course of 2-3 months, I had half a dozen late payments. More than half of my loans wound up being charged off.
I haven't been to the site in years, but if I had that many bad loans when the economy was better, I wouldn't expect to make a profit now that the economy is worse.
Sounds like your loans went bad when the economy went south, and that you invested in risky loans. They revamped the lending standards and have been showing 10% returns lately. With the economy hopefully headed in the right direction things will get better. They also show that anyone who has over 100 loans since they adjusted their standard in 2009 haven't lost money.
I just started and am also investing in risky loans. I am confident that I will have positive returns around 10%, but I can update you all after the 6 month point. I probably have a couple hundred loans that have an average rate around 30%.
What is your feedback on the site?
I am always looking for new ways to invest money
I think it is a very risky way to invest. These loans are unsecured, so the only thing at risk is their credit score. Which means as a borrower you are holding the bag when they walk.
Although, I think some loans have a proper risk assessment relative to their yield. So, if you are careful you can make some money.
I on the other hand, don't have a strategy and am essentially throwing money away...haha