LendingCROWD NZ P2P

[Kelvin]

Obviously not a planned bit of maintenance ... more like more like unforseen problems... i haven't bothered ringing them, has anyone else rung to see what handle they're putting on it?

Sent them a msg. on Facebook. They said the maintenance is taking longer than expected, and aim to have it back up by the end of the day

[Minvestor]

This outage is going on much too long. I am beginning to worry...

[PennyPicker]

It's a long outage for sure. As a reasonably young and very small company, perhaps they have immature rollback and recovery processes. Certainly if it looked like the problem was going to be more than an hour they should have considered rolling back to backup and solving the problem without a clock hanging over their heads. Of course... that's assuming the backups have been working (I could tell you some stories).

Realistically while the site is down there are no new loans issued, so it's not as if some users are benefiting while others miss out, presumably all investors are locked out. So when the system comes up the deposits will be calculated and new loans aggregated. And life will go on. Unless of course someone with a stuffed briefcase is currently flying to South America and it's damage control...

[Kelvin]

That's also what I thought PennyPicker - something must have gone wrong with their backups or rollback process.

It's pretty poor that they've not provided any update on their Facebook page

[Saamee]

That's also what I thought PennyPicker - something must have gone wrong with their backups or rollback process.

It's pretty poor that they've not provided any update on their Facebook page

I would have thought an Email out to all Active Lenders & Borrowers would have taken very little effort.

They do not have their own IT resources, so maybe their Outsourcer has had an IT Centre outage....

[Entrep]

It's a shocker, it is SO EASY for companies to COMMUNICATE with their customers in this day and age when this kind of thing happens. FB is too easy and doesn't even require their own systems to be up.

[PennyPicker]

I agree guys, a few minutes to write a carefully worded message to, as you say Saamee, all active lenders would peoples minds at ease. They probably forget because they're on the inside looking out, but P2P lending in NZ is in it's infancy and hiccups like this can make the market more nervy than it needs to be.

Maybe there's feature suggestion here; preferred communication channel when there's an issue, Facebook, SMS, twitter, email. I could knock that out in a weekend. Wayne, call me, I do contracting :D

BTW, site is back.

[Saamee]

I agree guys, a few minutes to write a carefully worded message to, as you say Saamee, all active lenders would peoples minds at ease. They probably forget because they're on the inside looking out, but P2P lending in NZ is in it's infancy and hiccups like this can make the market more nervy than it needs to be.

Maybe there's feature suggestion here; preferred communication channel when there's an issue, Facebook, SMS, twitter, email. I could knock that out in a weekend. Wayne, call me, I do contracting :D

BTW, site is back.

So I just seen. Thanks PP

[Darchie]

I'm having trouble exporting the statements ... is it just me or have others had trouble also?

[Saamee]

I'm having trouble exporting the statements ... is it just me or have others had trouble also?

@Darchie > Have just tried and although it took a long time to build the statement, and even longer to Export ( much spinning of wheels ) it did work and Download OK

[Minvestor]

No new loans on offer yet -- I bet that part of their system isn't working yet, and there will be a flood at some stage (likely when I'm not looking). However, the paying off of loans seems to be happening today, which is why I need more investments.

[kiwi783]

Can this be correct. Todays A2 loan. Age 32 years - Credit File age 22 years?

[Saamee]

Can this be correct. Todays A2 loan. Age 32 years - Credit File age 22 years?

Typo most likely > 12 Years would fit well ( 32 - 12 = 20 )

[Entrep]

Anyone else find a $50K personal loan for someone so young with their own house already a little sus? A2 seemed too low.

[Saamee]

Anyone else find a $50K personal loan for someone so young with their own house already a little sus? A2 seemed too low.

Unfortunately PERSONAL does not tell us as Investors much at all!

Could be for a Wedding and Student Loan(s) consolidation.

We just do not know.

[Soolaimon]

Not much going on here lately. Is it because there are less loans these days or everyone is happy. I am not as happy as I was with LC. Too many early re-payments, too much idle money waiting on loans and nearly impossible to get B1 and B2 loans.
Back plugging away at Harmoney and seeing better results now after being hit rather hard with write offs earlier.
At LC I have 159 loans active and 82 re-paid. I find it difficult to get on top of these figures as for every new investment there is 1 paid off, therefore a steady $700 or so not earning.

[icyfire]

Not much going on here lately. Is it because there are less loans these days or everyone is happy. I am not as happy as I was with LC. Too many early re-payments, too much idle money waiting on loans and nearly impossible to get B1 and B2 loans.
Back plugging away at Harmoney and seeing better results now after being hit rather hard with write offs earlier.
At LC I have 159 loans active and 82 re-paid. I find it difficult to get on top of these figures as for every new investment there is 1 paid off, therefore a steady $700 or so not earning.
I haven't invested in LC for over a month due to the very few loans. However, things are going very well over at Squirrel Money where I had $1,500 invested in one single day this week. Better earning 9% than having money sitting idle not working hard for you.

[Toasty]

Not much going on here lately. Is it because there are less loans these days or everyone is happy. I am not as happy as I was with LC. Too many early re-payments, too much idle money waiting on loans and nearly impossible to get B1 and B2 loans.
Back plugging away at Harmoney and seeing better results now after being hit rather hard with write offs earlier.
At LC I have 159 loans active and 82 re-paid. I find it difficult to get on top of these figures as for every new investment there is 1 paid off, therefore a steady $700 or so not earning.

You have to be sitting in the website ready to go to get any B1 and B2 loans. I have upped the amount into these loans now due to their scarcity. I stumbled on to a B1 14.79% this morning just as a client called. Busy trying to read the description really quickly while talking to the client as well as frantically clicking the buy button. Got in with seconds to spare. It was probably filled in under a minute.

Investing in C and D loans only at Harmoney trying to create some differentiation between it and LC. LC is at 10.97% average and Harmoney on 13.68%. I also had a recent run on Harmoney with defaults on mostly E and F loans.

All good fun though.

[kiwi_on_OE]

LC/secured v Harmoney/unsecured is a good differentiation?

[icyfire]

LC/secured v Harmoney/unsecured is a good differentiation?
While having some security instead of no security at all, the LC loan will only be covered to a point if a borrower defaulted and a vehicle was used as security . Also, vehicles depreciate fast.
For example, if someone borrowed $20k for 60 months on LC and used their vehicle as security which is currently worth $8k then that vehicle will be worth less every year over the 5 year loan term.

[Toasty]

LC/secured v Harmoney/unsecured is a good differentiation?

Not worried about security as I view all this as high risk, prepared to lose it type investing. Just trying to move Harmoney to a higher return than LC due to the gap between unsecured and secured however marginal that protection may be.

[Saamee]

From Interest.co.nz

An NZ P2P update, today.

http://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/88709/generation-rent-investment-guide-episode-3-peer-peer-lending-platforms

[Toasty]

Amazing how quickly the B1 and B2 loans get filled.

From the time I received the email to clicking on to my already signed in LC webpage and buying a share of a B1 to refreshing to check if the loan was still there and noting that it had been competely filled took just under 15 seconds.

[Soolaimon]

Amazing how quickly the B1 and B2 loans get filled.

From the time I received the email to clicking on to my already signed in LC webpage and buying a share of a B1 to refreshing to check if the loan was still there and noting that it had been competely filled took just under 15 seconds.

It's not getting any better, I am really struggling to keep invested here !!!

[RMJH]

Amazing how quickly the B1 and B2 loans get filled.

From the time I received the email to clicking on to my already signed in LC webpage and buying a share of a B1 to refreshing to check if the loan was still there and noting that it had been competely filled took just under 15 seconds.
Yep, waste of time, can't seem to place any volume on this site.

[Toasty]

Someone mentioned it a few pages. The process is BUY!...then calmly review what you have bought and hope that it looks ok. I am lucky enough to work in the financial industry so I sit here with one eye on my phone for the email alerts and the webpage up and ready to be accessed. At the moment its quite fun but I can see it getting annoying when you have funds sitting around going nothing.

No defaults yet so Lending Crowd must be doing something right.

[Soolaimon]

After scoring my first B loan for some weeks because of a complete fluke when I clicked on 1 minute after a loan was listed on Friday I now see that it has been reversed today. Not happy !!!
I am not sure how to get immediate alerts for emails on my phone and am getting tired of logging on hour after hour in the hope of "scoring".

[Saamee]

After scoring my first B loan for some weeks because of a complete fluke when I clicked on 1 minute after a loan was listed on Friday I now see that it has been reversed today. Not happy !!!
I am not sure how to get immediate alerts for emails on my phone and am getting tired of logging on hour after hour in the hope of "scoring".

If you already get Emails on your Smart Phone then you are all set.

Otherwise you will need to set up Emails on your phone.

There is no other way!

If you are also with Squirrel > They have an APP that works well on your phone!

[Darchie]

Well i say Saamee, that's not completely true in my case as, I get an email notification; log in Immediately and often find small B loans are already filled and gone!
It's almost like my notifications are 10 minutes old before I receive them!

[Saamee]

Well i say Saamee, that's not completely true in my case as, I get an email notification; log in Immediately and often find small B loans are already filled and gone!
It's almost like my notifications are 10 minutes old before I receive them!

With Email notification he will be ahead of where he is now.

Yes agree, they still may not help him wrt speed

ll depends on the size of the loan!.

[joker]

Well i say Saamee, that's not completely true in my case as, I get an email notification; log in Immediately and often find small B loans are already filled and gone!
It's almost like my notifications are 10 minutes old before I receive them!
These small B loans (2k-6k) are filling in under 10 seconds. It's like only one investor is filling the entire amount, yet large A loans are up for hours.

[joker]

With Email notification he will be ahead of where he is now.

Yes agree, they still may not help him wrt speed

ll depends on the size of the loan!.

Size doesn't seem to matter - it depends more on the interest rate - little demand for A loans but huge demand for B loans.

[Bjauck]

Size doesn't seem to matter - it depends more on the interest rate - little demand for A loans but huge demand for B loans. If a loan appears a reasonably short time after a previous one, there may be tail end lenders logging in to view the previous loan just as the new loan is listed.

I think some email servers do not allow push notifications so that could cause a delay of you need to rely on a regular fetch.

[Soolaimon]

What I would really like is a beep, whistle etc when an email arrives in my phone. Like a text does. Maybe this can be done but I am not up with all the tricks.
Another thing I think about is that one has to invest 8 to 10 times the amount per loan that I do at Harmoney and as yet no defaults. If and when there is a LC default it is going to have a big effect on my RAR. The security factor does not come into it for my way of thinking
I have about 25K in each and invest $25-75 in B and C loans at Harmoney and $250=400 in LC loans. I have been in H since the start and after dabbling with a few "testers" at $25 I was putting $100-200 per loan. At around 18 months I got hit with a few defaults that knocked my RAR of 15% down to 11%. For the last year or so I have only been investing as above and my RAR is slowly climbing. 12.9% and I am happy at that. LC RAR has never made the 12% due to my inability to score B loans very often. And then if I get a $300 default at LC the RAR will drop considerably.
It is all good fun though and it is still subsidizing the returns from term deposits at the banks and that is the reason I am in.

[RMJH]

These small B loans (2k-6k) are filling in under 10 seconds. It's like only one investor is filling the entire amount, yet large A loans are up for hours.
I am no expert but wouldn't be surprised if these are being filled by automated trading of some sort. You would have no chance beating that manually and to be honest that kind of race doesn't feel like prudent investing!

[Bjauck]

What I would really like is a beep, whistle etc when an email arrives in my phone. Like a text does. Maybe this can be done but I am not up with all the tricks....
Try in IOS:
Settings-notifications-mail-allow notifications-then click on your mail provider-select type of sound

However your mail provider's server may not allow push notifications so you may need to settle on fetching mail (for example) every 15 mins.

[Soolaimon]

Try in IOS:
Settings-notifications-mail-allow notifications-then click on your mail provider-select type of sound

However your mail provider's server may not allow push notifications so you may need to settle on fetching mail (for example) every 15 mins.
Thanks Bjauck, I have always allowed Notifications, however the sound had been deactivated somehow?
Not sure that I will persist with LC, certainly not putting any more $ in at this stage. I will wait and see if they can come up with a fairer allocation to us retail lenders.

[Bjauck]

Thanks Bjauck, I have always allowed Notifications, however the sound had been deactivated somehow?
Not sure that I will persist with LC, certainly not putting any more $ in at this stage. I will wait and see if they can come up with a fairer allocation to us retail lenders. It is definitely a lottery for those lenders who cannot login asa a notification comes in.

Apologies if it is a basic suggestion - but when you reach the step then enables you to select the type of sound (eg "pulse") have you checked to ensure that you have not selected "none."

You get a sound when you get a text, so I am presuming notification sound alerts are turned on.

[Soolaimon]

It is definitely a lottery for those lenders who cannot login asa a notification comes in.

Apologies if it is a basic suggestion - but when you reach the step then enables you to select the type of sound (eg "pulse") have you checked to ensure that you have not selected "none."

You get a sound when you get a text, so I am presuming notification sound alerts are turned on.

Yes, I am sure the sounds are turned on. Thanks.

[Entrep]

I see what you guys mean. I haven't invested anything new in LC for a month or so and now it seems impossible to get anything!

They need to sort this with some sort of auto invest option.

[Kelvin]

Been smashed by early repayments recently

234 active loans
5 Overdue
74 closed :eek2:

[darrenc]

I am no expert but wouldn't be surprised if these are being filled by automated trading of some sort. You would have no chance beating that manually and to be honest that kind of race doesn't feel like prudent investing!

They're being filled by people like me who have email open all day and are generally working in front of the computer. I don't get them all because I'm not here all the time, but I've had 3 today (2x B2 and 1xB1). Some days I miss them all if I'm out at meetings. I have a phone alert set, too, but oftentimes that's too late for a B2 because it seems delayed vs my browser-based email.

You need to be in within 10-20 seconds on a B2 because they usually go within 30-60 seconds.

Also, there are some heavy hitters investing here, putting in four figures at a time.

[Soolaimon]

Been smashed by early repayments recently

234 active loans
5 Overdue
74 closed :eek2:
Little wonder that I am getting p...d off. I have 158 active and 89 closed.

[Saamee]

Little wonder that I am getting p...d off. I have 158 active and 89 closed.h

That's the good, the bad and the ugly of P2P investing.....

Always celebrate getting an early repayment!!

There's always a chance that you may not have got anything back ;)

[Soolaimon]

h

That's the good, the bad and the ugly of P2P investing.....

Always celebrate getting an early repayment!!

There's always a chance that you may not have got anything back ;)

An early repayment after several months is ok I agree. However, at LC when you get one that is only been active for 1 or 2 months, the time that those funds have been working for you and the delay while waiting to invest in the first place and then that delay all over again means that the net time earning interest is very small.

[Saamee]

An early repayment after several months is ok I agree. However, at LC when you get one that is only been active for 1 or 2 months, the time that those funds have been working for you and the delay while waiting to invest in the first place and then that delay all over again means that the net time earning interest is very small.

That situation can occur with any P2P Lender. Guessing borrowers get offered a better deal elsewhere!

[Investor]

An early repayment after several months is ok I agree. However, at LC when you get one that is only been active for 1 or 2 months, the time that those funds have been working for you and the delay while waiting to invest in the first place and then that delay all over again means that the net time earning interest is very small.

Welcome to P2P

[Saamee]

Revised \ New Investment strategy added > Diversifying into Finance Direct ( Lending Crowd's parent owner )

Positives

> No early repayments

> No fighting for or missing out on loans

> No daily logging in and checking

> No 10% Interest Flex payment


Negatives

> Slightly lower rates offered

> Quarterly Interest payments


Worth considering as another option > Call Wayne and discuss the history of Finance Direct, especially regarding how they came thought the GFC...

[Entrep]

You mean this https://financedirect.co.nz/Category?Action=View&Category_id=93 Saamee?

[Saamee]

Yes,that is them :)

[RMJH]

Revised \ New Investment strategy added > Diversifying into Finance Direct ( Lending Crowd's parent owner )

Positives

> No early repayments

> No fighting for or missing out on loans

> No daily logging in and checking

> No 10% Interest Flex payment


Negatives

> Slightly lower rates offered

> Quarterly Interest payments


Worth considering as another option > Call Wayne and discuss the history of Finance Direct, especially regarding how they came thought the GFC...
Lower interest and higher risk?

[Saamee]

Lower interest and higher risk?

Just another investment tool, aiding diversification.

9064

[whitt]

Lower interest and higher risk?
What criteria are required to meet loyalty rate?

I diversify with a couple of companies already so no harm adding another under my belt

[Saamee]

What criteria are required to meet loyalty rate?

I diversify with a couple of companies already so no harm adding another under my belt

If you are already established with Lending Crowd, then they should apply :)

[Saamee]

Definitely a Quiet start to August @ LC for loans with over 25% of the month already gone!.....

Same across at SM....

Was able to drop a relatively large sum into Finance Direct with NO waiting :)

[Saamee]

Better activity today @ LC with 3 x sizeable loans released....

[Minvestor]

Little wonder that I am getting p...d off. I have 158 active and 89 closed.

Me too. Too many getting paid off recently, including one less than a month old, it appears. Too much stress, even for a good return, and very little coming through, so I'm starting to pull out now

[joker]

Very hard to get invested as there is no "autolend facility". If you're not sitting at your computer waiting for email notifications you miss out. Even when you get in straight away, some loans have already been filled. Not worth having money sitting in your holding account as it's so hard to invest.

[Entrep]

Agree with all the above, have been using Squirrel. So easy.

[PennyPicker]

Very hard to get invested as there is no "autolend facility". If you're not sitting at your computer waiting for email notifications you miss out. Even when you get in straight away, some loans have already been filled. Not worth having money sitting in your holding account as it's so hard to invest.

Yes, I was getting fed up with missing out on loans, so I wrote an auto-lend client. It's been working well and I haven't missed a loan since starting using it two weeks ago. PM me if you're interested.

[Saamee]

Me too. Too many getting paid off recently, including one less than a month old, it appears. Too much stress, even for a good return, and very little coming through, so I'm starting to pull out now

Over 18 months have invested in 491 loans @ LC. 156 have now closed. A 31.8% closure rate.

This is just part of the personality of P2P investing...

It also far less than over at Harmoney where my early closure rate was around 60%!

[icyfire]

Agree with all the above, have been using Squirrel. So easy.
I agree, it's better to invest with Squirrel at a slightly lower rate than having money sitting in your holding account

[Saamee]

Very hard to get invested as there is no "autolend facility". If you're not sitting at your computer waiting for email notifications you miss out. Even when you get in straight away, some loans have already been filled. Not worth having money sitting in your holding account as it's so hard to invest.

My recent strategy has been to invest larger and quickly across @ Squirrel Money.

Then as the Loans get repaid @ SM move those repaid funds across to LC day by day \ week by week and slowly Drip Feed them into LC.

As least you $$'s are getting 9% on your funds at SM, while you wait to get into LC at say 14.79%.

[Saamee]

Many good loans coming through today @ LC :)

[whitt]

Many good loans coming through today @ LC :)
i managed to get 3 of them between flights up and down country today.
I am very happy

[PennyPicker]

Many good loans coming through today @ LC :)

It's been a good few days actually. Encouraging and I'm glad for the business LC is doing. Pre-Xmas ramp up?

*soap box* Personally haven't struggled or had to worry about loans AT ALL. Having that habit of checking emails on the phone every few minutes at work, gone. That monkey on my back, he's gone too. I've hit all the loan grades I wanted in the last four weeks, 38 loans in total. In fact, getting every loan I want I've actually halved my investment per loan, reducing overall risk. Am now making headway on ratio of new loans vs closed while increasing capital.

With some help from others on the forum I've been testing a wee application I knocked out, for personal use a month ago. Recent updates have made it more user friendly. It's an auto investor. I think there is at least a few out there, but why not share the wealth, so to speak.

http://provance.nz/

READ the documentation, FAQ and Disclaimer, please.

It currently only supports filtering by loan grade. And allows different investment amounts per grade. If you have more specific lending criteria this isn't for you, yet...

Some users have commented their antivirus (usually Windows Defender) reports a Trojan present. It's a common issue with the software used to create the installer, false positives to be sure. But if you're AT ALL unsure, don't touch it.

During the install I do get a warning from Windows, "Windows Defender SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Running this app might put your PC at risk." but that's just because the application isn't signed with a certificate. It's free and I'm not paying for a cert.

Development on this application has halted barring bug fixes. I'm working on something 'more evolved... and more accessible'.

Note: This program behaves in the same way as you having a browser tab open and occasionally peering into the Loans page. It shouldn't upset the powers that be, but if you're concerned it will, don't touch it! It's pretty stable and recovers from most unexpected scenarios, though I am aware of some outstanding bugs. If you're at all unsure, DON'T TOUCH IT!

I'm making it available because I feel it's a feature Lending Crowd should be providing by default and by not doing so they're hurting their retail investor engagement.

PS don't use this thread for questions about the app, PM if you want to know more (It's Windows only ATM...).

[whitt]

There has been lots of loans this week. Plenty to choose from , especially if you are lucky enough to be using pennypickers app

[Saamee]

It's been a good few days actually. Encouraging and I'm glad for the business LC is doing. Pre-Xmas ramp up?

*soap box* Personally haven't struggled or had to worry about loans AT ALL. Having that habit of checking emails on the phone every few minutes at work, gone. That monkey on my back, he's gone too. I've hit all the loan grades I wanted in the last four weeks, 38 loans in total. In fact, getting every loan I want I've actually halved my investment per loan, reducing overall risk. Am now making headway on ratio of new loans vs closed while increasing capital.

With some help from others on the forum I've been testing a wee application I knocked out, for personal use a month ago. Recent updates have made it more user friendly. It's an auto investor. I think there is at least a few out there, but why not share the wealth, so to speak.

http://provance.nz/

READ the documentation, FAQ and Disclaimer, please.

It currently only supports filtering by loan grade. And allows different investment amounts per grade. If you have more specific lending criteria this isn't for you, yet...

Some users have commented their antivirus (usually Windows Defender) reports a Trojan present. It's a common issue with the software used to create the installer, false positives to be sure. But if you're AT ALL unsure, don't touch it.

During the install I do get a warning from Windows, "Windows Defender SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Running this app might put your PC at risk." but that's just because the application isn't signed with a certificate. It's free and I'm not paying for a cert.

Development on this application has halted barring bug fixes. I'm working on something 'more evolved... and more accessible'.

Note: This program behaves in the same way as you having a browser tab open and occasionally peering into the Loans page. It shouldn't upset the powers that be, but if you're concerned it will, don't touch it! It's pretty stable and recovers from most unexpected scenarios, though I am aware of some outstanding bugs. If you're at all unsure, DON'T TOUCH IT!

I'm making it available because I feel it's a feature Lending Crowd should be providing by default and by not doing so they're hurting their retail investor engagement.

PS don't use this thread for questions about the app, PM if you want to know more (It's Windows only ATM...).

I started using this App 1 week ago now.

It's really helped secure a share in the more popular and smaller loans.

Thanx PP ;-)

[Bjauck]

I started using this App 1 week ago now.

It's really helped secure a share in the more popular and smaller loans.

Thanx PP ;-)

I appreciate the work and skill put into the development of this app...However,
I do not understand why Lendingcrowd allow a third party app access to its website so that Lenders can secure part of the principal of loans.
Why should those lenders who do not wish to use an unofficial third party app be forced to be put at a disadvantage?
Lending Crowd should either establish their own auto-invest, officially list this app on their site, or deny access to it, in my opinion.

[Investor]

I appreciate the work and skill put into the development of this app...However,
I do not understand why Lendingcrowd allow a third party app access to its website so that Lenders can secure part of the principal of loans.
Why should those lenders who do not wish to use an unofficial third party app be forced to be put at a disadvantage?
Lending Crowd should either establish their own auto-invest, officially list this app on their site, or deny access to it, in my opinion.

I haven't looked at the app and am not an IT specialist but I assume the app just mimics a user - accesses the website, types in your email/password then orders loans. LC may not be able to differentiate between the app and a person or have not attempted to.

[Bjauck]

I haven't looked at the app and am not an IT specialist but I assume the app just mimics a user - accesses the website, types in your email/password then orders loans. LC may not be able to differentiate between the app and a person or have not attempted to. OK thanks. I understand it mimics a user, but in fact it is an app, which needs to be downloaded from a third party, using an investor's details to access the LC website.

[Investor]

OK thanks. I understand it mimics a user, but in fact it is an app, which needs to be downloaded from a third party, using an investor's details to access the LC website.

Yes it isn't something I would personally use given you have to share your password and email with the plugin. I'm sure the creator does not have any sinister intentions however providing someone with your login details to anything is a bit like giving a thief the keys to your home.

[whitt]

Any idea whats up with LC login. Looks like sites been down all day .7

Isn't this also the second time they have closed site this year?

[Saamee]

LC website was back online by 22:30 Wednesday evening....

[PennyPicker]

To those of you using the LC Auto Investor client application, there is a new release.

http://provance.nz

I note there are a number of users still on 17.10.4. I recommend upgrading to 17.10.7 (the current release) as it incorporates a number of imported fixes and useful features.
You'll find full details of the changes here; http://provance.nz/changelog.html.

[Saamee]

To those of you using the LC Auto Investor client application, there is a new release.

http://provance.nz

I note there are a number of users still on 17.10.4. I recommend upgrading to 17.10.7 (the current release) as it incorporates a number of imported fixes and useful features.
You'll find full details of the changes here; http://provance.nz/changelog.html.


Thanks PP. It sure Automates the Loan buying process. Not sure it's for everyone as some Users may not be so comfortable with it - But hey it's the way forwards and the future. ( It's no different from a share trading program with pre made orders on standby! )

[darrenc]

Thanks PP. It sure Automates the Loan buying process. Not sure it's for everyone as some Users may not be so comfortable with it - But hey it's the way forwards and the future. ( It's no different from a share trading program with pre made orders on standby! )

$2250 B2 loan. Got the email, logged in within 5 seconds. Invested $100 (successfully), refreshed the page and it was gone, probably within 20 seconds. I didn't use auto-invest because it doesn't work on my computer (17.10.7 and using a brand new laptop, Windows 10 so not sure why). You've got to be quick to beat the bots, but it's possible.

[Saamee]

$2250 B2 loan. Got the email, logged in within 5 seconds. Invested $100 (successfully), refreshed the page and it was gone, probably within 20 seconds. I didn't use auto-invest because it doesn't work on my computer (17.10.7 and using a brand new laptop, Windows 10 so not sure why). You've got to be quick to beat the bots, but it's possible.

Darrenc,

If you have any error info from trying to run the program, just Email that to PP.

I too am Win 10 using 17.10.07 with NO issues.

The 'bot' got a slice of that loan!

[whitt]

Darrenc,

If you have any error info from trying to run the program, just Email that to PP.

I too am Win 10 using 17.10.07 with NO issues.

The 'bot' got a slice of that loan!
DarrenC
I am windows 10 with no issues too.
Did you manage to install app or are you stuck at windows installation security warning screen? To get past that press more info then windows will let you run app

[darrenc]

DarrenC
I am windows 10 with no issues too.
Did you manage to install app or are you stuck at windows installation security warning screen? To get past that press more info then windows will let you run app

It's installed and will open but it won't let me enter a username or password, giving me the exclamation mark like there's nothing in the field. I don't think I'm running anything odd - the computer is only 2 weeks old and just has mostly standard software on it (M$, browsers, Adobe CS). I'll get round to sending a support request soon.

[joker]

It's installed and will open but it won't let me enter a username or password, giving me the exclamation mark like there's nothing in the field. I don't think I'm running anything odd - the computer is only 2 weeks old and just has mostly standard software on it (M$, browsers, Adobe CS). I'll get round to sending a support request soon.

Try unticking "Receive email notifications" on the Notifications tab

[darrenc]

The software update fixed it. I just got in on the $5k B2 without the software running though; quick fingers logging in when the email arrived. It had gone within 30 seconds.
I've enabled the software to see if it gets any of the loans. According to the activity log it's only checking every 1-2 minutes and the majority of B2 loans are gone in 30 seconds. I've got perhaps a 25% chance of getting a loan when I'm not sitting in front of the computer, which is better than the odds without the software.

[whitt]

I've enabled the software to see if it gets any of the loans. According to the activity log it's only checking every 1-2 minutes and the majority of B2 loans are gone in 30 seconds. I've got perhaps a 25% chance of getting a loan when I'm not sitting in front of the computer, which is better than the odds without the software.
I have never missed a loan due to timing with the software. Technically I guess its possible but it hasnt happened yet.
Maybe the loans go live prior to emails being sent

[darrenc]

Email notification at 12:12am for a B2. Most people's software would have been sleeping as I got in easily.

[Saamee]

Email notification at 12:12am for a B2. Most people's software would have been sleeping as I got in easily.

Sought of unusual time for a loan to come out... Maybe shift workers?

Out of luck, woke up at that time and checked Emails and Yes got a slice :)

[whitt]

Email notification at 12:12am for a B2. Most people's software would have been sleeping as I got in easily.
lucky my account was low on credit anyway.

[whitt]

For those that normally miss out when loans come online.
There is currently available a massive $76K B1 loan. Due to size it might take a bit longer to reach 100% so possible a good option if loan matches your criteria.

[Demilich]

To those of you using the LC Auto Investor client application, there is a new release.

http://provance.nz

I note there are a number of users still on 17.10.4. I recommend upgrading to 17.10.7 (the current release) as it incorporates a number of imported fixes and useful features.
You'll find full details of the changes here; http://provance.nz/changelog.html.

Hi PP,

Thanks for sharing the app, it works great.

Is there anyway to turn off the sleep-period, or change it? I'm in Europe, so it goes into sleep mode at the same time loans start appearing. Currently getting round it by switching my PC timezone to NZT before going to bed.

[Saamee]

Hi PP,

Currently getting round it by switching my PC timezone to NZT before going to bed.

I too am Overseas.... You always need your PC on NZ time to be able to get NZ TV ( via a VPN! ) ;-)

[PennyPicker]

Thanks for sharing the app, it works great.
Thank you.


Is there anyway to turn off the sleep-period, or change it?
You're not alone, and the next release has a couple of features to help you.
⦁ Added: All date/time processing now occurs against New Zealand Standard Time. This allows international users or computers with regional settings not set to NZ to still participate during operational hours in NZ time.
⦁ Added: Increased operational hours from 7am-9:30pm to 6am-1am.

I am testing a local build with these changes and when I'm satisfied I'll push a new release (has a number of other fixes too).

[Demilich]

Thank you.


You're not alone, and the next release has a couple of features to help you.
⦁ Added: All date/time processing now occurs against New Zealand Standard Time. This allows international users or computers with regional settings not set to NZ to still participate during operational hours in NZ time.
⦁ Added: Increased operational hours from 7am-9:30pm to 6am-1am.

I am testing a local build with these changes and when I'm satisfied I'll push a new release (has a number of other fixes too).

That'd be awesome, thanks again. :t_up:

[Saamee]

@Demilich > Would be interested to hear if you have now Upgraded to the Version that covers International Time Zones? Is it doing for you what you required?

[Darchie]

Saamee .... Did you by any chance take a screenshot of that loan taken out on 7.1.16 that's currently 70 days overdue?
I get the feeling this one could be heading towards creating LendingCrowds first sour loan! Hope not!

[Saamee]

Saamee .... Did you by any chance take a screenshot of that loan taken out on 7.1.16 that's currently 70 days overdue?
I get the feeling this one could be heading towards creating LendingCrowds first sour loan! Hope not!

@Darchie > Yes I'm in that one too! However did not start keeping screen shotz till June 2016.

I too agree with you, it's been Up to date On & Off for months now - In fact today I read up on LC's T&C's and @ 90 days is when it goes into "In Collection" - so we have 3 weeks to wait and see!!

9280

[darrenc]

I have never missed a loan due to timing with the software. Technically I guess its possible but it hasnt happened yet.
Maybe the loans go live prior to emails being sent

I just missed one with the software active - B2, $5k. The software checks every 2 mins and these loans sometimes go in 30 seconds or less.

[darrenc]

I just missed one with the software active - B2, $5k. The software checks every 2 mins and these loans sometimes go in 30 seconds or less.

Managed to get in manually on LN000-053-593 with $100 by logging in immediately when the email arrived. The software missed it and it was 99% by the time it'd finished processing my order.

Is anyone else having the same issue?

[PennyPicker]

The software checks every 2 mins and these loans sometimes go in 30 seconds or less.
Hi, this polling delay is deliberate, for two reasons; to level the playing field a little, and so the LC servers are not overly spammed by users of the application polling every few seconds for new loans.

Yes, it means there's an opportunity to miss 'quick to fill' loans. But you also have the opportunity to pick them up in only a few seconds. There's a new version coming this weekend, I'll see about improving this polling window.

[whitt]

Hi, this polling delay is deliberate, for two reasons; to level the playing field a little, and so the LC servers are not overly spammed by users of the application polling every few seconds for new loans.

Yes, it means there's an opportunity to miss 'quick to fill' loans. But you also have the opportunity to pick them up in only a few seconds. There's a new version coming this weekend, I'll see about improving this polling window.


Wow so far LC has loaded 5 or 6 loans today online. Its been a busy day.

I dont mind if app misses the occasional loan if it means playing field is level for everyone.

Over the past few months the volume of loans has slowly been increasing at LC

[darrenc]

Wow so far LC has loaded 5 or 6 loans today online. Its been a busy day.

I dont mind if app misses the occasional loan if it means playing field is level for everyone.

Over the past few months the volume of loans has slowly been increasing at LC

I agree - there should be some chance for other people to get into the loans rather than the software picking up all of them.

[Demilich]

@Demilich > Would be interested to hear if you have now Upgraded to the Version that covers International Time Zones? Is it doing for you what you required?

Sorry, meant to post a message about it a few days ago, but have been a bit busy.

The International Time Zone change appears to be working perfectly. Thanks for the update PP!

In regards to the polling for loans, I don't have an issue with it missing some loans either. If every loan is being obviously sucked up instantly by apps, they are more likely to crack down on them. Along similar lines, I was wondering: does it poll at a set interval, or at a random time between two numbers? e.g. it picks a random time between 2 minutes and 4 minutes and retries at that point, rather than just 2 minutes every time. Just to make it less obvious that it's an app.

[PennyPicker]

HI Demilich, glad to hear it's working for our friends abroad.

Re the timing, it's a random value between a min and max period (max period was reduced in the last patch). This isn't so much to mask it's behaviour from the LC servers, (they know the app is out there and in use) it's again just a behaviour that helps introduce some fairness between users of the app and non users.

I don't record connection activity unless the user opts in for anonymous usage reports, but what information I do have suggests not many people are using the app (it's word of mouth beyond this forum). So I don't think it's correct to characterise it as sucking up every loan. Prior to the apps debut small loans and B2 grades were going just as fast as they are now. There's no change there.

Given the rate at which that some loans consistently become filled, I'd bet there's more than a few similar apps out there. Any developer like myself could knock something out and keep it to themselves...

[whitt]

guys the latest update for LC autoinvestor app by PennyPicker is working great. It fixed some long term bugs and is very stable. version 17.11.05

Its been a busy week at LC with many loans uploaded and if you have been using latest build you probably have not missed any/many of those new loan listings.

[PennyPicker]

It's been a great week eh. I've run out of capital twice!

(Re LC Auto Investor (http://provance.nz), just working on a new version now. I note some users are still on the October release. Really suggest upgrading to get all the improvements found in later versions. Thanks to help from a few folks on the forum, we've tracked down an annoying disconnect bug earlier this week. Really appreciate your help guys.)

[Saamee]

Saamee .... Did you by any chance take a screenshot of that loan taken out on 7.1.16 that's currently 70 days overdue?
I get the feeling this one could be heading towards creating LendingCrowds first sour loan! Hope not!

Looks like at Midnight tonight this loan will become the 1st LC loan to go 'In Collection Principal'

9312

[joker]

Looks like at Midnight tonight this loan will become the 1st LC loan to go 'In Collection Principal'

9312

Hi Saamee, can you please give us an update on the status of this loan? Cheers and TIA.

[Saamee]

Hi Saamee, can you please give us an update on the status of this loan? Cheers and TIA.

@Joker > There is nothing more to add than what is shown on the LC Website....

https://lendingcrowd.co.nz/howitworks/investorfaq#lc-wrapper

9335

[Saamee]

@Joker > There is nothing more to add than what is shown on the LC Website....

https://lendingcrowd.co.nz/howitworks/investorfaq#lc-wrapper

9335

Well I guess @joker. myself and others all just got the update Email from LC.

Loan Written off & NO Loss of Capital.

Well completed and well done to LC.

[jallison]

Presumably the borrower has defaulted on the loan, therefore why was there no loss of capital ??

[Saamee]

Presumably the borrower has defaulted on the loan, therefore why was there no loss of capital ??

LC takes SECURITY on EVERY Loan :)

[joker]

Well I guess @joker. myself and others all just got the update Email from LC.

Loan Written off & NO Loss of Capital.

Well completed and well done to LC.

That's good news Saamee. I didn't get the email but I assume that's because I wasn't invested in the loan.

Cheers

[Saamee]

Around today, it is 2 years since LC started up and I started actively investing with them.

So a short wrap up of those 1st 2 Years follows.

N.A.R = 12.72%

Total Loans Invested in = 626

Total Open Loans = 391

Total Closed Loans = 235

That is 37.5% closed after 2 years.

Capital Losses to date = NONE

Write Offs to date = ONE ( NO Losses - 100% Capital & Interest Returned - From SECURITY :) )

LC just works, It's easy to manage.

Direct communication with LC is very responsive and awesome.

Long may this symbiotic relationship last!!

9347

[Soolaimon]

Around today, it is 2 years since LC started up and I started actively investing with them.

So a short wrap up of those 1st 2 Years follows.

Total Loans Invested in = 626

Total Open Loans = 391

Total Closed Loans = 235

That is 37.5% closed after 2 years.

Capital Losses to date = NONE

Write Offs to date = ONE ( NO Losses - 100% Capital & Interest Returned - From SECURITY :) )

LC just works, It's easy to manage.

Direct communication with LC is very responsive and awesome.

Long may this symbiotic relationship last!!

9347

Hi Saamee, I also have been in for close to 2 years, but my closed/paid off loan percentage is 42% and my return is 11.9% which compares to 12.8% at Harmoney. I am now using PP's auto invest and now getting my share of the higher interest loans and that should improve my stats over time. Not that I am complaining as these returns are still more than I expected when I started 38 months ago at Harmoney.

[PennyPicker]

Hi Saamee, Soolaiman, to add to the data pool, I'm coming up on my two year anniversary too (Jan 2016 was my first LC investment). Running a closed/paid of 33.7%

Total Loans Invested in = 533
Total Open Loans = 352
Total Closed Loans = 180
Total Closed Written Off = 1

Between the three of us that's an average C/P of 37.7%... so Saamee is right on the mark.

My NAR is creeping up, today at 12.38% vs Harmoney, just ticked up into 14.02% this month.

[Saamee]

It's been a great week eh. I've run out of capital twice!

(Re LC Auto Investor (http://provance.nz), just working on a new version now. I note some users are still on the October release. Really suggest upgrading to get all the improvements found in later versions. Thanks to help from a few folks on the forum, we've tracked down an annoying disconnect bug earlier this week. Really appreciate your help guys.)

@pennypicker,

Thanks for the new and latest version 18.01.01

Some much requested features are now incorporated, including 'virtually' a Screen Shot of the Loan information.

Males this version basically a Must Have!

[PennyPicker]

Thanks Saamee. Yes, meaning you can now search your emails for full loan details of any you've brought into using the auto investor application.

[PennyPicker]

Hey guys, some of you might have noticed a loan on LC yesterday/today with a funny balance value. Instead of the Funding Remaining amount being nicely divisible by 50 it was, well not. It got to the point this morning where it was 99% complete with $37.53 outstanding. This rightly raised questions among some investors.

To be clear, the problem wasn't with the LC platform or service, but it arose as a result of my auto invest application. It incorrectly issued a BUY order for an amount not evenly divisible by 50.
The app has been patched to prevent this in version 18.01.04 that was released earlier this morning http://provance.nz/changelog.html.

LC have fixed the error I introduced into their system and it's fine now.

Hope that removes any confusion.

[Soolaimon]

Hi all, nearly a month and no comments here re LC. All good I guess??? I do notice a few more behind in payments lately, one loan there is at 89 days over due. Lets see how that goes.

[whitt]

Hi all, nearly a month and no comments here re LC. All good I guess??? I do notice a few more behind in payments lately, one loan there is at 89 days over due. Lets see how that goes.
Autoinvestor app is working perfect and the entire system is flawless with LC.
Nothing to report.

[Demilich]

Hi all, nearly a month and no comments here re LC. All good I guess??? I do notice a few more behind in payments lately, one loan there is at 89 days over due. Lets see how that goes.

It's gone into collection. First one I've had reach that.

[Darchie]

Hey Saamee any chance of posting a screenshot of the loan application details of this new in collection loan. It's way before i started taking screenshots of details.

[Saamee]

Hey Saamee any chance of posting a screenshot of the loan application details of this new in collection loan. It's way before i started taking screenshots of details.

Hey @darchie > Although I too am \ was in this loan I have NO screen shot either :(

It was just later that month ( Sep 2016 ) that I started combining "Loan Note" ( LN ) numbers with "Loan Contract" ( LC ) numbers so I could Cross Reference!

Once loans have been cross referenced, then you can locate the screen shot via the combo of LC & LN number :)

[Saamee]

Anybody else NOT able to sign into the LC Dashboard since yesterday late evening??


9500

[Darchie]

Yeah ... down by the looks

[Darchie]

Just checking detail on this latest B1 loan. Notice that monthly income between $2,000 - $4,000 .. yet monthly outgoings at $5,000
Not really what you'd desire to invest in.

[icyfire]

Just checking detail on this latest B1 loan. Notice that monthly income between $2,000 - $4,000 .. yet monthly outgoings at $5,000
Not really what you'd desire to invest in.
That's one of issues with using a software program to automatically invest on your behalf!

[Robuste]

A $2000 band for income is somewhat meaningless anyway for a number of loans. I wish they would post a more specific figure.

I would then like the programme option to limit the % of income that is required for repayments.

[icyfire]

9570

Does Monthly Outgoings exclude the Monthly payment?

[Robuste]

I have always assumed that it was before the monthly payment. Ie produced when they are doing their application before they know the repayment terms exactly.

[darrenc]

Finally, Lending Crowd moves to block auto investors. Even using an auto investor it's virtually impossible to get into a B2 loan and most B1 loans go within 60 seconds. This means people are using auto investors that are probably hitting the site every few seconds which would cause unnecessary server load for LC.

[myles]

Agree, the whole thing annoyed me enough to stop investing...

Good decision by Lending Crowd, though somewhat overdue.

[Bjauck]

Agree, the whole thing annoyed me enough to stop investing...

Good decision by Lending Crowd, though somewhat overdue. I agree it was well overdue. However until they have their own autoinvestor or offer new loans to investors in tranches through the day, then the current LC system will favour investors who can immediately review new loans as soon as they are notified by email.

[whitt]

It would have been nice if LC had made there own auto investor tool tho.
Harmoney has this option and because it is in-house they have the ability to limit % of loans thru that method.
The fact LC didn't have a in-house tool means they lost control of 3rd party apps.

It was obvious 3rd party apps would be blocked in future but LC should have created and introduced something official by now and then 3rd party app use would have died off on there own. After all the 3rd party apps have existed for ages.
LC dropped the ball and should have seen the demand and been proactive.

[joker]

Not at all fair on LC's part. The inequality of those who do/don't use the app is being replaced by the inequality of those who can/can't access their computer instantly a loan is listed. The app was available to anyone who wanted to use it but instant access to a computer when a loan lists is not available to all. The app is a much fairer way to distribute loans because it polls at intermittant intervals. Accordingly, there are times that loans have been filled before you get to the next polling time. The best idea for LC would be to encourage all investors to use the app and perhaps restrict the maximum investment via the app to a couple of hundred dollars.

[whitt]

Not at all fair on LC's part. The inequality of those who do/don't use the app is being replaced by the inequality of those who can/can't access their computer instantly a loan is listed. The app was available to anyone who wanted to use it but instant access to a computer when a loan lists is not available to all. The app is a much fairer way to distribute loans because it polls at intermittant intervals. Accordingly, there are times that loans have been filled before you get to the next polling time. The best idea for LC would be to encourage all investors to use the app and perhaps restrict the maximum investment via the app to a couple of hundred dollars.
That raises some good points too. If LC used a webased version or desktop app then the polling would be random and fair on all users.
Now the new policy is unfair and only people who work at a desk job and get instant emails can invest.

[darrenc]

As a person that owns a custom-coded complex website (written in Angular, the same language that LC has used) with 1.3m visitors a year and 5m page views a month, I can't see the reason that LC would wait so long to create an auto-invest function on their website given the obvious demand for it. Either their programmers are stiffing them or they are planning something mega that even we can't conceive of. (It's probably the first option).

It is, at most, a couple of hundred hours of wireframing, coding and testing, if that. In fact, the model is already amply demonstrated by Harmoney, so part of the work is done.

It shouldn't be a separate app, it should simply be a set of rules within the website. We can start with basic functionality and build it up over time.

[myles]

The app was available to anyone who wanted to use it but instant access to a computer when a loan lists is not available to all.

The app was windows only so ruled out quite a few, no to mention the potential security risk associated with using it.

As darrenc hints at - doing it on the host side is the much better/fair option. LC's choice/decision to make I guess.

[whitt]

It is, at most, a couple of hundred hours of wireframing, coding and testing, if that. In fact, the model is already amply demonstrated by Harmoney, so part of the work is done.

It shouldn't be a separate app, it should simply be a set of rules within the website. We can start with basic functionality and build it up over time.

DarrenC I agree.
Waiting till later in 2019 to introduce a auto investment feature like LC suggested is a joke , Are they wanting to lose investors to the competitors?
Its some simple coding and not rocket science.

[PennyPicker]

As the developer behind Provance-LC, probably the most visible of the auto-investor applications (I doubt just I have done this but maybe I shared mine the most) I'd like to respond to some comments on the thread, but first...

I really do appreciate that the limitations of my application were it being tied to the Windows platform, and it's need to act on your behalf and therefore know your LC credentials. And of course this is more than easily exploited. I don't begrudge those of you that shied away, it's sensible in this day and age and your caution will keep you safe in the future. But to those that put their trust in me and most importantly, my integrity, I thank you. Further to this I happily offered the application for free and even then some of you chose to donate to the continued hosting and development of the app, a huge thank you. You all know who you are :)

And now my comments:


This means people are using auto investors that are probably hitting the site every few seconds which would cause unnecessary server load for LC.
Personally I deliberately designed the application to work in a way that limited polling to no less than a few minutes, primarily to not starve non app users of loans. There's also an implicit assumption in your comment that users of the auto-invest tools are so numerous or invest so much that they take up all available loan notes. From the usage statistics I have this is not the case in the slightest.


I agree it was well overdue. However until they have their own autoinvestor or offer new loans to investors in tranches through the day, then the current LC system will favour investors who can immediately review new loans as soon as they are notified by email.

That raises some good points too. If LC used a webased version or desktop app then the polling would be random and fair on all users.
Now the new policy is unfair and only people who work at a desk job and get instant emails can invest.
Agreed, this change in a sense makes things less fair. But life isn't fair so we cannot stew on that. For a start we're all in a position to be investing what to us is spare money on this venture. I think we need to remember not everyone is in a position to do so and we should remember that at least.
And while I sit at a computer screen all day I cannot react to every email I receive to see if it's a new loan. In fact the burden I felt lifted when I created this app was huge. I could relax now. Though with the recent reduction in loans on the LC platform and today's announcement I feel like I'm left with three options; invest more heavily in each loan when I can catch it; halt introduction of new capital and let what's there tick over; actively withdraw from the platform as it's currently too hard to use. I haven't settled on what I'm going to do yet. I really want to see LC succeed, I think they have a real point of difference against the other lenders and I feel compelled to help where I can. I've liked the company and the people from day one and am not so quick to turn my back on them. But the idea of having to do another year of manually buying into loans, honestly exhausts me.


As a person that owns a custom-coded complex website (written in Angular, the same language that LC has used) with 1.3m visitors a year and 5m page views a month, I can't see the reason that LC would wait so long to create an auto-invest function on their website given the obvious demand for it.
Then you might agree with me that a feature that some of us understood to be available early this year, mid this year, and now second quarter next year will likely never happen. If they have this on the roadmap for 2019 I'm really curious about what new content will be delivered in the interim. I expect none. And I expect this feature will continue to be pushed out until it all becomes a moot point...


The app was windows only so ruled out quite a few, no to mention the potential security risk associated with using it.
I really did want to provide a Windows, Max, Linux application and went down the route of designing a solution and planning the development time. However I'm doing this in what free time I have available and it's not the only project I have on the go. I had to compromise and not take on the extra work. In the long run I don't see it would have made any difference to today's outcome. Without push notifications from either LC or a cloud provider a mobile app was out of the question too.

In summary I don't see this delay a question of resources, money or people. This feature could be developed and tested, rolled out to some preferential customers for beta testing, could be done by one person in a few months, at most. They can even take learnings from Harmoney and overseas platforms. Everything they need to develop has already been solved by someone else.

Personally, the way I see it is that LC don't have the loan volume to warrant development of an auto invest feature and they don't have enough dev staff on hand to allocate some to this feature development. I've offered to help them in any way I can to bring release of this feature forward.

Aaron.

[joker]

Hi Aaron and thanks for the app. Like you I wasn't in a position to react to very email to invest in LC's loans and found real relief in being able to invest automatically. Very disappointed that LC has gone this way without offering an alternative. Again - thanks for your enterprise - it's most appreciated.

[RMJH]

Seems to me LC could reduce interest rates if demand from lenders is so high. I would have placed more money with LC but simply couldn't get significant volume.

[Darchie]

Aaron - I also thank you - your generosity in sharing this nifty program has saved my sanity - but sadly all your work has been sidelined! You must feel frustrated with LC 4sure.


i was off-line yesterday so totally missed all the mentioned changes above. Has LC made any public statement? if so where's it to be found?

An issue I have with LC is; I can only view my statements for around the first half of a month, after that trying to access just boots me out of their site! This has been on-going & unfixed for approximately 6-8 odd months ... I'm told they're working on a fix ... SO I ASK - who else has this Issue?

[joker]

Seems to me LC could reduce interest rates if demand from lenders is so high. I would have placed more money with LC but simply couldn't get significant volume.
Reminds me of a saying about turkeys and Christmas.

[Darchie]

Since located their Notice!

[darrenc]

@PennyPicker - I used your software and it was great, so thanks for creating it. I was talking about people who built their own version of your software who might not have controlled the flood of requests like yours did.
If I was building my own, I would have it checking every 10 seconds or so and when one comes up make a number of quick investments of $100 until it was exhausted. This is how I reckon these $2500 B2s go before you can even have time to log in.

[whitt]

PennyPicker/ Aaron was a legend for providing this app and it was much appreciated. We got in and have beta tested a feature which Lc could implement in future.

The road forward from here will be an interesting one. Lc loan volume is small compared to other p2p operators.
Today could be considered a fork in the road. What happens from here and how Lc handles high demand vs low volume vs limited capital to upgrade technology will be fascinating.

[myles]

The loss of this access is only perceived as unfair to those who used the app (a self centred view) - to all others it makes the current system fairer.

[Darchie]

The loss of this access is only perceived as unfair to those who used the app (a self centred view) - to all others it makes the current system fairer.

Not sure I'd bother using words like Fair or Unfair ... it was a Choice!

[Bjauck]

The loss of this access is only perceived as unfair to those who used the app (a self centred view) - to all others it makes the current system fairer.
Apart from for those who cannot always access their email and login in immediately to the website?

[PennyPicker]

I love the way some of you think. I've had a number of emails asking about subverting this 'restriction' and you're all very clever. The solution would surely work and could be obfuscated enough to hide the automated activity from LC. Though for the record I'm not going down that path.


...but sadly all your work has been sidelined! You must feel frustrated with LC 4sure.
Yes and no. As you know software always has an expiry date, and these sort of 'gap filler' apps are shorter than most. For me the enjoyment was in solving the problem of missing out on loans, and then sharing that success with others.

[RMJH]

Just got a loan notification by email but still no joy!

[darrenc]

Just got a loan notification by email but still no joy!

Yes, me too. I think it will take LC some time to figure out what is genuine traffic and what isn't. In fact, the only way I can think that they will be able to do it is seeing if a person is logged in and then counting how many page refreshes they make on the investment page and whether they are at consistent intervals. Of course, this is ridiculously easy to sidestep by anyone with any programming knowledge (randomise the intervals and have it access other pages, too, not just the loans page). Plus, given their rather pathetic development timeline, I actually doubt that they have anything in place at all yet, and this is just a scare tactic. It would almost be simpler to develop an auto-invest feature than it is to try to prevent this kind of auto-investment software from logging in and placing orders. If you had internal auto-invest that placed the investments before they hit the market, everyone would use it and the amounts would be fairly distributed. Most loans wouldn't hit the general market, therefore everyone is on a level playing field.

Of course, that disadvantages me because I work at a computer and can deal with emails as they come through.

So, for now, I've stopped using Aaron's awesome software and will simply keep the loans page open in my second monitor with an auto-refresh so it doesn't log me out, which is what I do with Harmoney. If I manage to spot a loan out of the corner of my eye I'll be in it asap.

[Darchie]

Just got a loan notification by email but still no joy!
Same here... Zip!

[mp52]

In fact, the only way I can think that they will be able to do it is seeing if a person is logged in and then counting how many page refreshes they make on the investment page and whether they are at consistent intervals.

Surely it's a little more nuanced than that - page refreshing does not equal auto-investment. It's legitimate to run auto-fresh just to prevent yourself having to re-login to a site repeatedly. Auto-investment suggests a sequence of page requests completing a transaction in a fraction of the time a human would (perhaps repeatedly in short succession depending on algorithms used). Maybe even a server log showing a pattern of only API data requests with none of the HTML or associated visual assets you'd expect from normal browser use?

[darrenc]

Surely it's a little more nuanced than that - page refreshing does not equal auto-investment. It's legitimate to run auto-fresh just to prevent yourself having to re-login to a site repeatedly. Auto-investment suggests a sequence of page requests completing a transaction in a fraction of the time a human would (perhaps repeatedly in short succession depending on algorithms used). Maybe even a server log showing a pattern of only API data requests with none of the HTML or associated visual assets you'd expect from normal browser use?

Firstly, it doesn't have to be an API data request; software can mimic a browser session. While I don't know how Aaron's software worked, it used our normal login details and not an API key. Secondly, what's the difference between a human placing the order and a piece of software mimicking a browser placing the order? You can make delays in the process to mimic human behaviour. As I mentioned, it would be easy to detect if it was one account rapidly entering multiple orders for $50 or $100, but very difficult if it was one order for $500 and the software deliberately delayed the activation of each part of the process.

We know that B2 minimum amount is $2250, so assuming a person has software polling every 10 seconds they would almost certainly be able to invest the majority of that, say $1700. With a B1 loan it's going to be more. You could place an order of $2000 or more, then grab another order 20 seconds later if some remains. And so on. Harmoney would then only be able to determine that there has been multiple orders placed for one of the loans. But, with the loans with single entries, it would be hard to ascertain whether they are bots or humans. One other measure they could use is if someone manages to get into every single loan, although this still doesn't mean they are using an auto-investor.

Also, I don't know whether the penalty is enough. Let's say LC bans you from investing any more in that account. You don't lose the money and you continue getting interest. How difficult is it to set up another account under a different name or person then just be more careful?

Anyway, we'll have to see how it works. I doubt whether LC will report how many people it is banning. The $17k B1 loan today stayed around on the platform 6 minutes but it wasn't a super-appealing loan but the $5k B1 loan was gone in less than a minute.

[whitt]

if somebody was that way inclined and needed a workaround I am sure they could create an email rule that opened the existing app and ran it for 1 minute only once a loan listing email came thru.
For experimental purposes only of course..

[joker]

if somebody was that way inclined and needed a workaround I am sure they could create an email rule that opened the existing app and ran it for 1 minute only once a loan listing email came thru.
For experimental purposes only of course..
And could they please send me a copy too?

[whitt]

And could they please send me a copy too?
I tried the concept and it is possible to run an app using script thru outlook email, you can even set script to kill app after a time based period.

Although using the app from Pennypicker is no longer possible as he has set its licence to prevent usage. He is a very clever cookie.

You would instead need to run a less reliable 3rd party app or create your own if you wanted to di the email trigger workaround.

I might move more funds to Harmoney if LC proves difficult to lend thru. I have had reasonable results with Harmoney over 2 years of use and they have Auto invest feature.

[darrenc]

By the time you've received the email, launched the app and logged in, most B2 loans will be full.

At the moment I'm at 14.2% in LC and 14.7% in Harmoney. If you're picking in Harmoney you can get good results, but it's quite active - you need to be on there frequently during the day or you miss the good loans.

[Saamee]

Looks like RWT Certificates were Emailed out from LC today :)

Just waiting for Harmoney now....

[darrenc]

There's new validation ('recaptcha') on the pop-up screen where you do the ordering. It should help remove the less sophisticated bots and auto-investors.

The $16k B1 only hung around a couple of minutes maximum, though.

[Soolaimon]

I have started withdrawing from LC today, I have given till now since they stopped the automation apps and have not been able to score a loan since. Sitting at the computer this morning I tried as quick as I could to get the two loans that were issued and missed out. So, you people with quick notification abilities on your computer go for it. I will be back when LC come up with an auto-invest system that is fair to all. Pity, cause I did prefer it here compared to Harmoney, but thing seem to be going ok over there at the moment. So, that's ok.

[PennyPicker]

I'm withdrawing too. Not interested in, or prepared to play 'whack-a-loan'.

[nztyke]

Me too, a pity but not worth the effort.

[RMJH]

No new loans for me either. Even with autoinvest it would be hard to build a portfolio given the low number of listings. But I will still place money when I can.

[whitt]

My balance is increasing weekly with no easy way for me to invest.
If they don't come up with a auto investment feature soon I might need to pull out.
I can't have money just sitting and not invested.

[Investor]

My balance is increasing weekly with no easy way for me to invest.
If they don't come up with a auto investment feature soon I might need to pull out.
I can't have money just sitting and not invested.

The writing is on the wall.

[darrenc]

I've got $25k in LC and $75 in Harmoney. Investing $150 a time in LC with B1 and B2, it's only just possible to find enough loans. I'm sitting at the computer most of the day so can respond quickly but still miss out half of them. With Harmoney, it's challenging to keep it below $500 in cash; I'm investing $50-100 per note (depending on the grade).

I'm currently at 14.3% with LC and 14.7% with Harmoney, so they are comparable in terms of return. I expect Harmoney to decline gradually and LC to remain roughly the same.

If I wasn't at the computer most of the day, LC would be virtually impossible.

[mccollr]

For us working folk not a s***t show in hell getting invested. Withdrawing of the auto invest app to make it fair to all is hard to believe.

[darrenc]

For us working folk not a s***t show in hell getting invested. Withdrawing of the auto invest app to make it fair to all is hard to believe.

LC doesn't need your money. The objective is to get the loans filled. The loans are only hanging around a matter of minutes (at most), so there's no reason for them to spend money generating more demand. They'd only need to do this if loans hung around more than a couple of days. This is why I don't think they will do it.

The other day I got a captcha when trying to order. This was super annoying as it delayed entering the order. I managed to get into the loan, but only just.

[Darchie]

LC must be Really Loving all this available cash lying around, which seems to be building up so quickly with repays! That's got to be quite a money spinner for them alone.

[Whippeedo]

Its very disappointing that auto lend has been banned....talk about a witch hunt

And it hasn't made loans anymore accessible than they were before.

Why don't they just limit investors to say $50-$100 per loan so we can all have a chance to get in.

As it stands someone can snatch up a whole loan in one go buying manually. That's hardly apportioning fairly!!

[icyfire]

@Whippeedo I don't see LC allowing third-party auto-lending software back in or LC themselves building one until they have loans waiting for days to be filled

[darrenc]

@Whippeedo I got to the most recent $12k B1 loan (LN000-066-278) very early (only a couple of hundred dollars had been invested). I bought $150 - finally got all my money invested... - then rapidly refreshed to see what kinds of investments were being made. The majority seemed to be around $200-250, going down fairly linearly, but it dropped $4000, $2000 and at least 1x $1000. Obviously I don't know if it's the same user making these larger investments.

You wouldn't be able to buy it all in one go unless you were first otherwise the platform would return an error. If $4k is left in the loan, by the time you've activated the sale, chances are that $1500 has already been accounted for.

LC doesn't have to apportion this fairly. It could be considered an active investment because you have to be there ready. There aren't many passive investments where you'll return 14% pa. Well, apart from Auckland property if you bought in 2010.

Stopping bots doesn't seem to have slowed down the investment levels. B1 and B2 loans still last less than 2 minutes. This means either that there are plenty of people in front of the computer, or the strategies for defeating bots aren't working. LC wouldn't be worried either way: their purpose is to get the loans filled.

[jallison]

A $4000 buy, that is one third of the total loan, I think LC to be fair does needs to apportion the loans

[Saamee]

It's Close to 2.5 years since LC started up and I started actively investing with them.

So a short wrap up of those 1st 2.5 Years follows.

N.A.R = 13.06%

Total Loans Invested in = 817

Total Open Loans = 438

Total Closed Loans = 379

That is 46.4% closed after 2.5 years.

Capital Losses to date = NONE

Write Offs to date = TWO ( NO Losses - 100% Capital & Interest Returned - From SECURITY :) )

Plus One Loan Default currently going through the collection process ( No House as Security! )

LC just works, It's easy to manage.

Long may this symbiotic relationship last!!

9739

[jallison]

Rubbish to the average punter who can't access the website full-time Lending Crowd is absolutely useless

[Saamee]

Rubbish to the average punter who can't access the website full-time Lending Crowd is absolutely useless

I'm just an average punter too ;-) Just like you!

What is the definition of Average Punter?

Easy to take a walk and invest somewhere else......

[humvee]

New Reduced interest rates - announced today.

Just saw the 1st B1 Loan go through at the new rate,

If we see a big increase in volume of loans while retaining the low write off rates , I don't mind this so much - but time will tall

9740



Personal loans







A1
A2
B1
B2


3 Years - Old
7.90%
10.96%
13.97%
18.74%


3 Years
6.89%
9.98%
13.28%
17.99%


5 Years -Old
8.42%
11.87%
14.79%
19.10%


5 Years
8.34%
10.99%
14.54%
18.65%


Business loans







A1
A2
B1
B2


3 Years - Old
8.95%
11.86%
14.74%
19.36%


3 Years
7.98%
10.98%
14.25%
18.10%


5 Years -Old
???
12.84%
15.39%
19.75%


5 Years
9.49%
11.97%
14.98%
18.96%

[humvee]

B1 loan up now That's the longest ive seen o loan remain in a long time.... 30+ mins and counting. Property as security too.

[Darchie]

Maybe many of the Mums & Dads were tucked up in bed by that late hour ... the aspects I noted with that Loan was the credit Rating was only Good .. it's been surprising the increased amount of Just Good credit ratings coming through .. but also it was a sole borrower & it was at the old higher interest rate as well.

[whitt]

Lots of radios ads for LC last couple of days and lots of loans came online today also.
Maybe the drought is broken and LC are ramping up

[Bjauck]

Rubbish to the average punter who can't access the website full-time Lending Crowd is absolutely useless Without an auto-invest feature, you certainly need to be prepared and able to respond to new loans instantly whenever you get a notification. Busy people do go to the back of the queue!

[jallison]

It is not just busy people,you really need a desk job

[whitt]

Without an auto-invest feature, you certainly need to be prepared and able to respond to new loans instantly whenever you get a notification. Busy people do go to the back of the queue!
I got 2 of the many yesterday in my lunch break just checking my emails on mobile phone

[darrenc]

LC is ON FIRE today. 4 loans already and 3 of them B-grade. It makes me wish I didn't put all my spare into the first B1 this morning.

[humvee]

One of my recent investments has been returned to my account this afternoon with LN000-069-634 - Buy reversed. I wondered why my balance had jumped up

[leesal]

Have been slowly building up LC loans, slow going.

Not sure what to do with the Business Loans - with personal guarantee's. Normally avoid them in HM, what do you guys do here? Can't work out my loans to avoid strategy :)

[Saamee]

Have been slowly building up LC loans, slow going.

Not sure what to do with the Business Loans - with personal guarantee's. Normally avoid them in HM, what do you guys do here? Can't work out my loans to avoid strategy :)

Personally, Anything that has Property as a Guarantee I take very happily....

So far in 2.5 Years, two loans have gone 'Belly Up', both had Property as Security, and all investors were repaid in full on both occasions.

[mccollr]

Have been slowly building up LC loans, slow going.

Not sure what to do with the Business Loans - with personal guarantee's. Normally avoid them in HM, what do you guys do here? Can't work out my loans to avoid strategy :)

Not sure it is possible to have a strategy with Lending Crowd. If you hang about more than a nano second you miss out. No time to look at anything. IMHO

[joker]

I've got my first ever LC loan in collection. Should I expect a happy ending or have others out there had write-offs?
9826

[Saamee]

I've got my first ever LC loan in collection. Should I expect a happy ending or have others out there had write-offs?
9826

LC have had NO Write Offs to date :)

[humvee]

LC have had NO Write Offs to date :)

Technically they have had write offs.... However eventually 100% of capital was recovered presumably from securities

[leesal]

Not sure it is possible to have a strategy with Lending Crowd. If you hang about more than a nano second you miss out. No time to look at anything. IMHO

That particular loan was on for nearly an hour. Plenty for anyone who wanted :) $100k business loan with personal guarantee's over property and vehicles.



Personally, Anything that has Property as a Guarantee I take very happily....

So far in 2.5 Years, two loans have gone 'Belly Up', both had Property as Security, and all investors were repaid in full on both occasions.


Impressive record! At this stage I'm investing in all A2-B2. Built up to nearly 50 loans over a couple of months. Hopefully can get it up near my HM over the coming 12 months. Also finally managed to get a note @ 9% invested on SM

[humvee]

My 2nd lending crowd loan ever has just gone into collection, I suspected it was comming - It was sitting at 90days in arrears



Id
Grade
Type
Term
Rate*
Principal
Opened
Principal received
Interest received**
Collection end date***


LN000-014-222
B1
Personal
36 months
13.97%
$50.00
04/07/2016
$27.54
$9.06
04/03/2019




Does any one have a record what type of security was on this? - as as soon as the loan is filled there does not seem to be anyway to see this

9891

[joker]

My 2nd lending crowd loan ever has just gone into collection, I suspected it was comming - It was sitting at 90days in arrears



Id
Grade
Type
Term
Rate*
Principal
Opened
Principal received
Interest received**
Collection end date***


LN000-014-222
B1
Personal
36 months
13.97%
$50.00
04/07/2016
$27.54
$9.06
04/03/2019




Does any one have a record what type of security was on this? - as as soon as the loan is filled there does not seem to be anyway to see this

9891
I don't have any security details - but all things considered, if it's a complete loss, it's not a complete disaster...$27.54 + $9.06 means that you got $36.60 back. For tax purposes, you write-off the O/S principal of $22.46 and this effectively commutes the $9.06 to capital received rather than taxable interest. The remaining $13.40 is set off against your other taxable interest meaning the capital loss is $11.05 (assuming 17.5% tax rate) but (the downside is) you will have received no interest on the loan. To date, I believe that there have been no principal write-offs by LC so it all might end well yet.

[humvee]

I don't have any security details - but all things considered, if it's a complete loss, it's not a complete disaster...$27.54 + $9.06 means that you got $36.60 back. For tax purposes, you write-off the O/S principal of $22.46 and this effectively commutes the $9.06 to capital received rather than taxable interest. The remaining $13.40 is set off against your other taxable interest meaning the capital loss is $11.05 (assuming 17.5% tax rate) but (the downside is) you will have received no interest on the loan. To date, I believe that there have been no principal write-offs by LC so it all might end well yet.

My other "write off" was 100% principal recovered and some but I don't think all interest recovered so all in all fairly good.

[Bjauck]

My other "write off" was 100% principal recovered and some but I don't think all interest recovered so all in all fairly good.
Were the collection costs recovered as well or were they a cost charged to your account?

[joker]

LENDING CROWD'S FIRST WRITE-OFF???
Just had a write-off with LC. B2 loan @ 18.74% opened 14/09/17.
My investment = $100, principal owing was $89.26.
Interest received = $6.77
Recovery = $73.43 less collection costs of $15.22 = NET RECOVERY $58.21
WRITE OFF = $31.05.

Anyone else on the forum in this one?

[CR_111]

Yes, my first loss from my Lending Crowd investments. Can't really complain. Recovery amounts with Harmoney tend to be much closer to zero.

[humvee]

LENDING CROWD'S FIRST WRITE-OFF???
Just had a write-off with LC. B2 loan @ 18.74% opened 14/09/17.
My investment = $100, principal owing was $89.26.
Interest received = $6.77
Recovery = $73.43 less collection costs of $15.22 = NET RECOVERY $58.21
WRITE OFF = $31.05.

Anyone else on the forum in this one?

DO you have the loan ID? or any other details? security type? - I assuming it was most likely vechcle only

I'm not in that B2 loan, I do have 1 B1 loan in collection and 1 A2 Loan that was written off but with 100% principal recovered

[beacon]

Were the collection costs recovered as well or were they a cost charged to your account?

charged separately to account

[beacon]

DO you have the loan ID? or any other details? security type? - I assuming it was most likely vechcle only

I'm not in that B2 loan, I do have 1 B1 loan in collection and 1 A2 Loan that was written off but with 100% principal recovered

L00-14-330, B2 personal 18.74%, 11.1k sought with vehicle security and death cover, akl renter 2-5 years, 45year old, self employed over 10 years, excellent credit, credit file 22 yrs, 3 enquiries, 0 defaults, income 2-4k, outgoings 1k pm

[humvee]

L00-14-330, B2 personal 18.74%, 11.1k sought with vehicle security and death cover, akl renter 2-5 years, 45year old, self employed over 10 years, excellent credit, credit file 22 yrs, 3 enquiries, 0 defaults, income 2-4k, outgoings 1k pm

If I had seen that I would have loaned on it, more then $50 - so prob $100 in the past more likely $150-$200 now - So Im just lucky I happened to miss out on getting that one

[CR_111]

Had a good few weeks there where if I logged in as soon as a loan came up, I would get a piece. The last week seems to have gone back to the bad old days, where the loan is already gone, even if I log in the second the email arrives. Are people using bots again?

[darrenc]

Had a good few weeks there where if I logged in as soon as a loan came up, I would get a piece. The last week seems to have gone back to the bad old days, where the loan is already gone, even if I log in the second the email arrives. Are people using bots again?

I managed to get in 1 x B2 today by logging in straight away, but the other one was already 92% full by the time I got there, despite responding almost immediately, and my $50 effort was thwarted due to not enough funds remaining on the loan.

I can't see that Lending Crowd really cares that much whether bots are involved or not; it just needs to fill the loans. Both those B2 loans were less than $4k and they do go really quickly.

[joker]

I managed to get in 1 x B2 today by logging in straight away, but the other one was already 92% full by the time I got there, despite responding almost immediately, and my $50 effort was thwarted due to not enough funds remaining on the loan.

I can't see that Lending Crowd really cares that much whether bots are involved or not; it just needs to fill the loans. Both those B2 loans were less than $4k and they do go really quickly.

Yeah I missed out today too - I think it was because all the loans were so small. I assume that the emails go out in series so some investors will receive it before others. Also it may depend on how fast your email server transmits the email to you. Additionally as some punters put $500 - $1000 or more into a loan it only takes three to eight bids before it is filled.

[humvee]

My lending crowd NAR for my current/larger account has been above my harmoney RAR since June now (only just) and I have just reached 120 active loans combined so I thought I would do some number crunching

NAR 14.80% - Larger current account - Average active loan age = 190 days
NAR 15.17% - winding down account - Average active loan age = 381 days

Combined figures


All loans
Average interest rate All loans 15.72%
Weighted average interest rate 15.70%
Average Loan Age 293 days



Open Loans
Average interest rate 15.82%
Weighted average interest rate 15.63%
Average Loan Age 303 days


Closed loans
Average interest rate 15.60%
Weighted average interest rate 15.85%
Average Loan Age 282 days


60 Months
Average interest rate 15.81%
Weighted average interest rate 15.77%
Average Loan Age 287 days


36 Months
Average interest rate 15.58%
Weighted average interest rate 15.62%
Average Loan Age 301 days

[humvee]

Just received this, this is the 1st one I have lost principal on

Loan note LN000-014-222 has been written off. The disbursement amounts from collection were:


Principal:
$11.50


Collection costs:
($6.02)


The principal balance on LN000-014-222 was $22.46 meaning there has been a $10.96 principal write off to your account.
The write off of a loan is never a good thing but is an occasional and unavoidable part of lending money. We hope that your Lending Crowd investment portfolio has not been unduly affected by this write off.
Regards,
The Lending Crowd Team

[humvee]

Just received this, this is the 1st one I have lost principal on

Loan note LN000-014-222 has been written off. The disbursement amounts from collection were:


Principal:
$11.50


Collection costs:
($6.02)


The principal balance on LN000-014-222 was $22.46 meaning there has been a $10.96 principal write off to your account.
The write off of a loan is never a good thing but is an occasional and unavoidable part of lending money. We hope that your Lending Crowd investment portfolio has not been unduly affected by this write off.
Regards,
The Lending Crowd Team




That said once the $9.06 in interest I had already received is added in my loss is only $1.90 - plus getting 0% interest for the time it was loaned out

[Kelvin]

That said once the $9.06 in interest I had already received is added in my loss is only $1.90 - plus getting 0% interest for the time it was loaned out

Plus the $6.02 collection fee

[humvee]

Plus the $6.02 collection fee

Unfortunately you are correct. I had not read it that way until I went and checked my transaction statement.

[Soolaimon]

No posts here for nearly two months!!!! Everybody happy?? I am having more than ever trouble getting new loans and am having to withdraw funds now, although I did fluke one this morning. However, looking back over the 180 still active loans I notice more than usual behind with payments, one being 66 days. Maybe another test of their default recovery coming up?

[icyfire]

Numerous times I logged in as soon as I got the email but the loan had already been filled. It looks like some investors are putting hundreds of dollars in individual loans with the belief that LC loans don't default. We could potentially see more defaults on LC but only time will tell.

[Bjauck]

No posts here for nearly two months!!!! Everybody happy?? I am having more than ever trouble getting new loans and am having to withdraw funds now, although I did fluke one this morning. However, looking back over the 180 still active loans I notice more than usual behind with payments, one being 66 days. Maybe another test of their default recovery coming up? If you are not able to respond within 5 minutes to incoming email notifications - this platorm is nigh on impossible to invest through.

[RMJH]

Clearly the ban on auto trading has had negligible impact. LC is waste of time as it is impossible to build a properly diversified portfolio unless you cheat the system. More like a rapid fire video game than an investment portal imo.

[leesal]

Very little time to make a decision. Generally a 5 second look.

Nonetheless have picked up approx 100 loans in the last 6 months.

Would be nice if LC had more loans

[mccollr]

It is really gambling as there is zero opportunity to look at the loan. By the time you log in they are generally gone. Virtually impossible to stay invested.

[Cool Bear]

My total investment in LC is dropping like a stone due to withdrawal of surplus cash sitting around for weeks. From almost 60k earlier this year to 30+K now. Getting a loan to invest in here is almost as hard as winning a small prize in lotto. Really a waste of time.

[Pipi]

Totally agree, I have been withdrawing my cash as it becomes available. It was a waste of time.

[darrenc]

I am in front of my computer all day and can jump on immediately. I find it very difficult to get a B2 - they're gone in seconds and I perhaps invest in 1 in 4 of them. I can get into most B1, but by the time I've logged in (and I'm quick at logging in) they're often half full and they only hang around a minute, maximum. A2 hang around a little longer. So, my opinion is that there are still people using automated investment software. I have $25k in and only invest $150-200 per loan and I'm only just keeping up with getting my available cash reinvested.
I'm pulling all mine out of Harmoney, which is taking a while. It's difficult to know what to invest in now to get the really good returns.

[Pipi]

I am in front of my computer all day and can jump on immediately. I find it very difficult to get a B2 - they're gone in seconds and I perhaps invest in 1 in 4 of them. I can get into most B1, but by the time I've logged in (and I'm quick at logging in) they're often half full and they only hang around a minute, maximum. A2 hang around a little longer. So, my opinion is that there are still people using automated investment software. I have $25k in and only invest $150-200 per loan and I'm only just keeping up with getting my available cash reinvested.
I'm pulling all mine out of Harmoney, which is taking a while. It's difficult to know what to invest in now to get the really good returns.

darrenc - Why are you pulling your money out of Harmoney.

[darrenc]

darrenc - Why are you pulling your money out of Harmoney.
Harmoney went through a phase, starting a few months ago, where there were virtually no loans, then it started a phase of some loans but almost none of them matched my lending criteria. I haven't looked for a couple of months now - just taking the money out as it becomes available. I'm making 14.5% which is reasonably good (and the same as what I'm making at LC), but it did require me to be constantly on it to get into the loans and I don't really have time.

[Pipi]

Harmoney went through a phase, starting a few months ago, where there were virtually no loans, then it started a phase of some loans but almost none of them matched my lending criteria. I haven't looked for a couple of months now - just taking the money out as it becomes available. I'm making 14.5% which is reasonably good (and the same as what I'm making at LC), but it did require me to be constantly on it to get into the loans and I don't really have time.

I'm withdrawing mine from Harmoney also, as I feel if interest rates start going up and we do have a ecomonic downturn, then there will be a lot of defaults on these types of loans.

[Soolaimon]

I am doing the reverse of you guys, ie pulling out of LC and increasing Harmoney. I have about 30K in each and have been in both from the beginning and am pretty satisfied with returns (12% LC and 13% harmony) Returns are lower than other investors on ST but I could only get the A loans most of the time on LC and now only go for the B and C loans on Harmoney.
My reason for lending on P2P was to supplement the lower returns on term deposits and although it requires some time at the computer it has done the job for me for the last 4 years. I am aware of the risks if there is a downturn but by accepting slightly lower returns I hope to avoid a hiding to some degree.

[icyfire]

People are either still using automated investment software or investing hundreds or thousands in a loan

[CR_111]

I think option A. No matter how quickly I open the LC site, there is always a large chunk of the loan already gone.

[RMJH]

I'm withdrawing mine from Harmoney also, as I feel if interest rates start going up and we do have a ecomonic downturn, then there will be a lot of defaults on these types of loans.
If there was a downturn and default rates, say, doubled or even tripled I suspect that P2P might well fare better than shares or property in the same situation.

[PennyPicker]

I've been aggressively withdrawing from LC since whenever it was earlier this year. Until now that money has floated straight over to Harmoney where my return has always been a percent or two higher. At the current rate I might be cleared out in another 18 months.

[mccollr]

I think option A. No matter how quickly I open the LC site, there is always a large chunk of the loan already gone.

The thing that disappoints me most is that when they banned the use of auto invest software they said they would be hard on those that did not comply. They cannot be policing this as yesterday a loan was gone in 10 seconds. No way humans can work that quick. So those playing with a straight bat are penalised.

[icyfire]

LN000-057-737 is 78 days overdue. Does anyone have the details for this loan?

[jallison]

The thing that disappoints me most is that when they banned the use of auto invest software they said they would be hard on those that did not comply. They cannot be policing this as yesterday a loan was gone in 10 seconds. No way humans can work that quick. So those playing with a straight bat are penalised.

If you work at a manual job and havnt got ready access to the internet using a bot is the only way you Can investin lendingcrowd . Suggest you pressure LC to create their own autolend which is what they promised

[darrenc]

If you work at a manual job and havnt got ready access to the internet using a bot is the only way you Can investin lendingcrowd . Suggest you pressure LC to create their own autolend which is what they promised

They don't have a vested interest in creating an autolend because their main concern is getting the loans funded. They are not having a problem with that. They don't need autolend until there aren't enough non-disillusioned investors to tip money into their loans.

[Bjauck]

If you work at a manual job and havnt got ready access to the internet using a bot is the only way you Can investin lendingcrowd . Suggest you pressure LC to create their own autolend which is what they promised LC could hold approved approved loans back in order to release them on to the platform outside work hours - that is if their P2P is intended to be directed at retail lenders lending to retail borrowers. Retail lenders should not be expected to be instantly available during work hours to assess new loans.

[darrenc]

A $40k B2 just landed. Drink your fill, it's hanging around.

[Soolaimon]

LC could hold approved approved loans back in order to release them on to the platform outside work hours - that is if their P2P is intended to be directed at retail lenders lending to retail borrowers. Retail lenders should not be expected to be instantly available during work hours to assess new loans.

I called them up some time ago to ask if they could release loans out of working hours and they indicated that it was up to the borrower as they are the ones who accept the loan after it is filled and therefore control the listing time. I don't know about this, perhaps a borrower could confirm this one way or another?

[Saamee]

LN000-057-737 is 78 days overdue. Does anyone have the details for this loan?

I believe that it is the Loan of the Screenshot attached....

It just went into Default \ Collection overnight.

There is Property & Car as Security - So Fingers crossed Investors should be OK.....

10184

[darrenc]

First loan in more than 460 loans I've invested in is going into collection:


LN000-054-905
B1
Personal
60 months
14.79%





Let's see how this goes. I don't have a record of what the security was. Currently it's returned 20% (including interest) of the principal I put in.

[Saamee]

OK well it's time for my 36 Month Investment Update on Lending Crowd....


Been in with LC since their very 1st loan which was issued on 21st December 2015.


Write Off Losses = TWO


Loan Early Repayments = 56.4%


Platform RAR = 13.41%


# of Loan = TOTAL = 920 ACTIVE = 401


Arrears = CURRENTLY 5 OR 6 ( 1.89% )


Out of the 3 x Platforms I do \ have actively invested in, for me this is the easiest, most straight forward and user friendly to use.


LC have grown with me as I have grown with LC.


Everyone investing in P2P is here for the same reason - to increase our earnings.


For me my initial aim in P2P was to earn in interest per week, Quadruple what the NZ pension currently is. This milestone has now been reached.


Happy P2P trading :)

[Bjauck]

OK well it's time for my 36 Month Investment Update on Lending Crowd....


Been in with LC since their very 1st loan which was issued on 21st December 2015.


Write Off Losses = TWO


Loan Early Repayments = 56.4%


Platform RAR = 13.41%


# of Loan = TOTAL = 920 ACTIVE = 401


Arrears = CURRENTLY 5 OR 6 ( 1.89% )


Out of the 3 x Platforms I do \ have actively invested in, for me this is the easiest, most straight forward and user friendly to use.


LC have grown with me as I have grown with LC.


Everyone investing in P2P is here for the same reason - to increase our earnings.


For me my initial aim in P2P was to earn in interest per week, Quadruple what the NZ pension currently is. This milestone has now been reached.


Happy P2P trading :) Have you got an unauthorised auto-invest facility or Can you respond as soon as you get an email loan notification? It certainly seems to me that most loans disappear almost immediately. Daily activities mean that I cannot respond immediately. For me I think that is a big disadvantage in what is otherwise a good platform. Funds are just accumulating in the non interest bearing account.

[joker]

Have you got an unauthorised auto-invest facility or Can you respond as soon as you get an email loan notification? It certainly seems to me that most loans disappear almost immediately. Daily activities mean that I cannot respond immediately. For me I think that is a big disadvantage in what is otherwise a good platform. Funds are just accumulating in the non interest bearing account.
Hey Sammee, I don't expect you'll answer this as the trouble with answering is you either get yourself into trouble or everyone copies you and you miss out on the loans altogether but what I would be keen to know (that's not top secret info) is how much per loan you invest and how many days overdue do your loans have to be before you class them as arrears?

[Soolaimon]

OK well it's time for my 36 Month Investment Update on Lending Crowd....


Been in with LC since their very 1st loan which was issued on 21st December 2015.


Write Off Losses = TWO


Loan Early Repayments = 56.4%


Platform RAR = 13.41%


# of Loan = TOTAL = 920 ACTIVE = 401


Arrears = CURRENTLY 5 OR 6 ( 1.89% )


Out of the 3 x Platforms I do \ have actively invested in, for me this is the easiest, most straight forward and user friendly to use.


LC have grown with me as I have grown with LC.


Everyone investing in P2P is here for the same reason - to increase our earnings.


For me my initial aim in P2P was to earn in interest per week, Quadruple what the NZ pension currently is. This milestone has now been reached.


Happy P2P trading :)

Hi Saamee, Like you, I have been in from the start but because of not being able to access loans quick enough these days my figures are a way down on yours.
Write offs= 2 (1 recovered)
Loan early repayments= 62.6%
Platform RAR = 11.99%
No. of Loans = 450 total...168 active
Arrears = 5 (1 of them 76 days)

I still manage to get the occasional loan, but usually A1 or A2 and for larger amounts. No hope at all to get the higher interest smaller loans, so as the unemployed funds get up over the 1K I transfer them to Harmoney where my returns are better. And I only take B and C grades there.
So well done Saamee.

[Saamee]

Hey Sammee, I don't expect you'll answer this as the trouble with answering is you either get yourself into trouble or everyone copies you and you miss out on the loans altogether but what I would be keen to know (that's not top secret info) is how much per loan you invest and how many days overdue do your loans have to be before you class them as arrears?


@joker >>

No I do not!

I used to use pennypickers - but as you know that all stopped 6 something months ago.

I am retired so instant access to a Laptop or Mobile is always present.

You should see me driving when an Email alert goes off > Pull over and login on Mobile....

Sometimes I get in to a loan and sometimes I miss out!

However have managed to stay Fully invested with all Funds @ LC

[Saamee]

@soolaimon

Good to hear from you and view you wrap too.

We all utilize different strategies for our P2P trading > None of them right or wrong > just right for each of us individually.

What is apparent is that we have to be ready to constantly change our preferred strategy often!

[kiwi783]

I'm surprised there have been no comments here about either the LC referral loans with increased flex fee; or the sudden increase in loan availability over last few days. Increased flow good for us?

[icyfire]

While reading the email from LC today I realized that LC themselves also invest in the loans published on the LC website. So the reason why it's almost impossible to invest in smaller loans it's probably because LC probably fill 90% of the loan before it's made available to retail investors.
So LC's parent company, Finance Direct, is looking to raise capital from LC investors at 6.75% per anum and then Finance Direct will use that money to invest in LC loans at 10-12%. It's a smart business model.

[kiwi783]

@icyfire - do you think the reason why a few loans are available these last few days is because LC parent has run out of investment funds (hence the email funds raise)? There was a similar moment on Harmoney a few months ago where retail was flooded with loans for a day or two. the cynic in me decided that they either had flicked the wrong switch directing towards retail first not wholesale first; or they were just reminding wholesale what they could miss out on probably in preparation for negotiations of wholesale terms. .......yes, call me a cynic.

[RMJH]

While reading the email from LC today I realized that LC themselves also invest in the loans published on the LC website. So the reason why it's almost impossible to invest in smaller loans it's probably because LC probably fill 90% of the loan before it's made available to retail investors.
So LC's parent company, Finance Direct, is looking to raise capital from LC investors at 6.75% per anum and then Finance Direct will use that money to invest in LC loans at 10-12%. It's a smart business model.
That would be one explanation why banning auto trading made no difference. Do we have any comfort that they don't cherry pick? I can't see the merit in lending to FD when you can lend directly to borrowers and take out a layer of risk.

[Saamee]

While reading the email from LC today I realized that LC themselves also invest in the loans published on the LC website. So the reason why it's almost impossible to invest in smaller loans it's probably because LC probably fill 90% of the loan before it's made available to retail investors.
So LC's parent company, Finance Direct, is looking to raise capital from LC investors at 6.75% per anum and then Finance Direct will use that money to invest in LC loans at 10-12%. It's a smart business model.


My understanding is that LC ONLY buy up the loans that "Us Investors' do not purchase within the time limit.

This is from speaking directly to Wayne.

[Saamee]

That would be one explanation why banning auto trading made no difference. Do we have any comfort that they don't cherry pick? I can't see the merit in lending to FD when you can lend directly to borrowers and take out a layer of risk.


I believe that banning auto trading made NO difference is for two main reasons:

> Growth in LC's base P2P number of new Lenders ( created more demand )

> P2P Lenders such as myself still are 'Online All Day" and so take portions in each desirable loan

[icyfire]

My understanding is that LC ONLY buy up the loans that "Us Investors' do not purchase within the time limit.
I work on the computer all day long and always log in as soon as I get the email notification from LC and sill miss out. It's pretty clear to me now that Finance Direct (FC) is given priority to invest in all LC loans and that explains it why it's so difficult to invest in most loans even though one lives on the computer. This is explained in FC's "Special Investment Opportunity" which I will not be investing in.
FC is a wholesale investor on the LC platform and it's the main reason why LC put an end to third-party auto trading.