Experience with Kiva

1. 76

   Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

   Has anyone here loaned money through Kiva? I did it for the first time today and it feels good. You can donate as little as $25 to help small business in third world countries; although they now loan to Americans. They money is eventually paid back and you can either cash out or invest in another loan.
   
   I set up a HubPages team if anyone is interested in joining:
   
   http://www.kiva.org/community/viewTeam?team_id=7628

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   1. 59

      Mrvoodooposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      I like the sound of this, I heard about it recently, but then forgot about it again, I'm pretty broke but I reckon even I could scrape together $25 bucks for a good cause, might even get some good karma out of it, can you lend money via PayPal?

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      1. 76

         Uninvited Writerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, you can pay through Pay Pal. That's what I did.

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         1. 59

            Mrvoodooposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            Hmmmmmm was quite into the idea until they asked for an additional 15% tip for themselves, think I'll do a little background checking first.

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            1. 76

               Uninvited Writerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               You don't have to give that. Kiva has a good track record.

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   2. 61

      nicompposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      The HubPages team has 3 members and zero dollars in loans.

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      1. 76

         Uninvited Writerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         I made my loan before I created the team. Julie Ann has over 34 loans. If you click on the profiles it tells you.

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2. 0

   Nelle Hoxieposted 15 years ago

   I have been contributing on Kiva for about 18 months now. Very small amounts, so far so good.

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3. 58

   Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

   I've alot of money invested in kiva and have never had a loan that hasn't paid back yet.
   
   Uninvited kindly joined after readig my kiva hub. 
   
   I've yet to loan more funds since joining the team she set up earliere this weekend but once I do it'll show as hubpages team lending.  My next bout of lending will be soonish - as soon as money is repaid to my account I just relend it!
   
   But I have to say in advance that my kiva lending may dip a bit the next couple of months as I've just been invited to Tanzania for 2 weeks to work & help support the Homoeopathy For Aids in Africa Project - as a homoeopath working towards my full license it's a huge cause for me andI may divert my funding there for the next couple of months to finance the trip.  Then it'll be back into kiva.

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4. 76

   Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

   Wow, that sounds like a great opportunity. You will have to write a hub about that

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5. 58

   Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

   Or a series.... Scary, and unexpected opportunity but it came out of the blue and really want to go!

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6. 79

   LondonGirlposted 15 years ago

   Sounds wonderful, keep us posted!

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7. 58

   Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

   Kiva has NEVER failed to raise the funds for a loan but there are 2 expiring today that look at risk - for the first time ever.
   
   The economic crisis is biting hard.
   
   $25 minimum loan and if you have any loose change in paypal please consider it.
   
   You can join the HubPages Team here  http://www.kiva.org/community/viewTeam?team_id=7628
   
   Then when you make a loan you tell it to count that loan towards the team and we'll see it!

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8. 83

   kerrygposted 15 years ago

   I just joined your team. I've been on Kiva for over a year and really enjoy it a lot. I've made 13 loans myself and gave gift certificates to many family members last Christmas - I try to drag everyone I know onto the site.
   
   ETA: JulieAnn, just checked the site and yeah, I've never seen so many at risk loans before.
   
   Folks, one of the really nice things about Kiva is that when the loan is repaid, you get your money back and can take it back out or reloan it to someone else. $25 isn't so bad anyway, and you don't have to donate the extra 10-15% to Kiva itself.
   
   Sort by Old to New to see the at risk loans.

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9. 0

   pgrundyposted 15 years ago

   I just joined the HP team. I won't be able to loan any money this week though. But I promise I will as soon as I make some.

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10. 76

    Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

    I'll probably make another one when I get home tonight
    
    Okay, I didn't wait. I donated right now. I chose one that is expiring in 13 hours. Let's hope they make it in time. It's at 90%.
    I have to be careful though, this could get addictive. But, I guess it's better than spending money on online bingo

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11. 58

    Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

    It's VERY Addictive!
    
    People here are a few tips.
    
    1. When you loan there is a way to select the team you're in so the loan ounts against out team.  please use it - it's just nice to show we are doing this rather than it going unnoticed - and if we attract more members that's GOOD for the people who desperately need the money.
    
    2. This is not charity.  It's a loan.  You get most of the money back but no interest.  My hub on kiva gives the full details check it out if you have any queries.
    
    3. If you want to make interest, I recommend MyC4 - I also have a hub on this (not sure if I'm allowed to put the links in here) and with that one you donate and not only get your money back but WITH INTEREST.  I use both but put the bulk of my money now into kiva.  It just sits better with me.
    
    4. When you get the money back you can withdraw it via paypal (which may incur fees) or relend it.  So what I do is regard my lending as charity and never take it back.  When loans get repaid I relend the funds.  That same money once donated can be used again and again and again not just lost into the black hole some charities are.
    
    Last - I CANNOT GUARANTEE YOU'LL GET YOU MONEY BACK.  I know some loans get defaulted on and never repaid but it's never happened to me yet.
    
    And Uninvited is right - when you loan, the most popular loans come up first.  Frankly, these guys don't need your help - tjose loans are already done well.  Sort by oldest first and you'll see the loans at risk from being close to deadline and not fully funded yet.  Those are the people who most need it.
    
    THANK YOU everyone who's supporting this.  It's a great thing.

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12. 76

    Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

    I'll check out MyC4. It feels good to be helping people to become self-sufficient.

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13. 83

    kerrygposted 15 years ago

    I just checked the site this morning and it looks like Kiva has renamed a couple of the searches on the lend page to make it easier for people to find at-risk loans.
    
    Instead of Old to New and New to Old it now shows "Expiring Soon" and "Most Recent". Smart change, imho.
    
    Currently there are four Bolivian groups with less than 24 hours left to be funded.

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14. 75

    cashmereposted 15 years ago

    Educate me please, what is Kiva?

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    1. 58

       Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Please visit my hub on Kiva where all is explained!

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15. 76

    Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

    If you visit the site it will tell you. The first post explains what it is.

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16. 58

    Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

    One more important kiva titbit:
    
    If you want to support Kiva for free, make this your startpage:
    http://www.smallthingschallenge.com and click it!

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    1. 76

       Uninvited Writerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Great. I already click the breast cancer site every day so no sweat to add another one

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17. 67

    meetbrandonposted 15 years ago

    I, too, have given on Kiva (meetbrandon).  I love reading through the profiles and helping fund the dreams of folks in developing nations.
    
    I've given to a RN in Mexico who wanted to start a fashion line of very cool scrubs (yeah! designer scrubs!) and a pig farmer from Vietnam who was creating dozens of jobs for folks by taking a loan to invest in new trucks to transport pigs and other livestock.
    
    Awesome fun!

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    1. 76

       Uninvited Writerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       It is great fun, and I've only been a member for a week. For all those other hubbers with some cash to spare to help your fellow man become self-sufficient. Join us!

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18. 0

    Nelle Hoxieposted 15 years ago

    It takes so little money to help someone so much. This has been a tight year, so I have only been giving $25 or so. But gosh. When you see what people do with it, it just makes me tear up.
    
    As my finances find solid ground, one of my goals is to give more to Kiva. I just feel that it is one of the best places to help out the world - one person or family at a time.

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19. 58

    Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

    Thanks Nelle for the support - and everyone else.
    
    
    I know the funds really make a big difference and I for one know I DEFINITELY get the money back there is no scam here.  I get it back then reinvest it by loaning it again.
    
    We can still use more team members for the HubPages team Uninvited set up - so do join and if you're not sure about anything or have any queries just ask her or me and I'm sure we'll assist.

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20. 60

    Richard Ringposted 15 years ago

    That's a very cool website. I'll do it tonight with my girlfriend, so we can pick someone we both want to support.

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21. 69

    aidenofthetowerposted 15 years ago

    I think it is a tad funny that I saw this today. Yesterday my husband and I discussed lending through Kiva. Two years ago I joined Prosper, which is sorta on the same idea, but was for Americans. They are no longer doing their service, but the $50 I lent there has been repaid and over the next 11 months before the loan is completely repaid I will earn about $20 on my $50 investment. With Prosper no longer working on new loans (they have some approvals they need to do), we have looked into Kiva. There are a lot of things that I like better about it. Helping others around the world, less needed investment ($25 verses 50), and even faster turn arounds on most loans (since the loan we made on Prosper was 36 months). We will be loaning money through Kiva after we get the credit cards paid off...probably in October.

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22. 76

    Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

    Great, the more the merrier

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23. 87

    Marisa Wrightposted 15 years ago

    I've been lending on Kiva for over a year (under my real name, so you won't find Marisa Wright there), and now have a few loans going. 
    
    There is a real feel-good factor to it - the fact that you can keep on lending the same $25 over and over, means you get the pleasure of giving again and again for no extra cash!
    
    Helium pays me through Paypal in $25 lots, so when that comes in I sometimes put it towards Kiva (Helium pays pretty badly so it doesn't happen often!)

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24. 54

    kmackey32posted 15 years ago

    People in the US need money these days, including myself. I can't afford to lend money when I can't pay my bills as it is.

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25. 58

    Julie-Ann Amosposted 15 years ago

    Just had a bunch ofloans paid back so relentt the funds.
    
    Thought I'd report it to keep this thread active in the forums.
    
    By the way the HubPages group only has 4 members - we still need more!

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26. 59

    Mrvoodooposted 15 years ago

    I've just received my first repayment, had kind of forgotten all about it, somewhere in Cambodia there is a pond full of fish where previously there wasn't, that's kind of cool I guess.
    
    I hope it goes well for her, after all, pretty much everyone likes fish.

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27. 76

    Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

    How exciting. I get an email yesterday telling me that a quarter of my loans has been paid back

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