Slow Money Hawaii

[SoCal_to_Hawaii]

A neighbor recently mentioned he had made a loan to an aquaponics farmer via Slow Money Hawaii (http://www.slowmoneyhawaii.com). I looked at their website and poked around the web some and it seems like a wonderful idea.

Has anyone had any experience with them either as a lender or borrower?

[Raven]

I’ve supported 7 loans to agricultural producers in the state of Hawaii through the Kiva.org microfinance lending platform. 5 of those are all over the Island, with one in Puna (towards Kurtistown) + one each on Kauai and Oahu. They’re all for loan terms of around 36 months, and have been paying back like clockwork. I’ve been very pleased with the experience since I started supporting Kiva loans in Hawaii 3 years ago. I especially like that these loans are primarily for family-run small sustainable farms. The last couple have been with Slow Money as a Trustee. I can highly recommend going through Kiva as a lender, or through Slow Money Hawaii as a borrower. Like everything else, though, due diligence on your part is required.

[terracore]

I don't know the relationship between slowmoneyhawaii and Kiva (maybe somebody can explain it).

We did loan a small amount of money through Kiva to a local farmer. It was our third P2P lending experience. So far the loan repayments have been going well. I tried 2 other small loans through Prosper (similar concept but you can borrow the money for any reason) and one of them defaulted almost immediately. I understand that they have since changed their lending options such that you can spread your risk out among a much larger pool to reduce shrinkage, but I wouldn't loan there again.

Kiva seems fine. A long time ago somebody taught me never to loan more unsecured money out than I could afford to immediately write off. Your $25 loan (or whatever) might not seem like much but when combined with hundreds or thousands of similar loans, can make a huge difference.

[Raven]

Using the existing Kiva platform, Slow Money Hawaii endorses borrowers’ loans and helps increase the lender base for loans that they have vetted. It piggy-backs and taps into a much larger global crowd-lending network.
Slow Money Hawaii is a registered Kiva Trustee. The Kiva loans are offered at zero interest, for up to a three-year term (max loan amount is $10,000). The Hawaii Food Producers Fund matches, dollar-for-dollar, all loan funds raised by Slow Money Hawaii-endorsed borrowers on Kiva. So it’s quite advantageous for Island farmers to go this route if they can - plus a direct loan through Slow Money Hawaii can be combined with a Kiva loan if the total investment needs to be more than the Kiva limit.
The Kiva option is really great for people like me who are willing to put in $25 a pop, along with others, to help support food sustainability on the Island.
Personally, I’m always on the lookout for Kiva loans on the Island, that have a sound rationale for needing and using the money raised. Growers in Puna, who may need to replace/repair their equipment or replant, may find Slow Money Hawaii’s partnership with Kiva a good option for financing their needs.

To find out more:
http://www.slowmoneyhawaii.com/kiva-loans.html
https://www.kiva.org/trustees/5422

There are two community teams of lenders on Kiva, that promote Hawaii loans that are fundraising on Kiva and bring together Kama’aina:
https://www.kiva.org/invitedto/slow_mone...y/slow9023
https://www.kiva.org/team/team_hawaii

PS - In case you’re wondering, I’m simply a Kiva lender. []

[PaulW]

Interesting. What sort of returns can an investor expect?

[Raven]

Zero.
The Kiva loans in Hawaiii are interest free.
Given what my bank would give me on $25, or how easy that would be to spend... I’m OK with that.
To clarify: I never make a loan thinking of it as a ‘donation’ - I do expect to be fully paid back, giving me the choice to re-lend or having my money come back to me.

[SoCal_to_Hawaii]

Thank you all for the information.

[terracore]

"Interesting. What sort of returns can an investor expect?"

Think of it more like charity, but if the borrower pays it back, you can give the money away again, or you can take the money back and try not to think about your inflation adjusted loss. I'm not sure if there is an IRS situation here that allows you to write off your losses in this manner.

Everybody's belief systems are different, but sometimes there are "returns" or losses that aren't measured by IRS codes.

There are other for-profit P2P lending/borrowing opportunities and I tried them. I'll stick to charity.

[Raven]

No, there’s no IRS tax write-off for any losses on Kiva loans.
I don’t view it as ‘charity’, but more of a hand-up.
I’d rather have my money “used” for someone to work their way out of poverty or be more productive, than see it enrich the banks - because I sure am not getting any other decent return on it anyway...
I have a bit over $5,000 invested in Kiva. This has now been lent out a little over five times. I’ve helped about 1,000 borrowers over the past five years.
I’ve lost $133 in defaults and $85 in currency losses in total - out of roughly $25,000 that was lent out.
I’m much happier with this use of my money. I view it as “social capital” - a small investment for a world of good.
The lastest Kiva loan that I made in Hawaii was to a young farmer who needed to replace equipment that was lost in the April floods on Kaua’i. I’m sure that the interest-free loan is making a difference for her family farm’s recovery.
Edited to add the link to Sierra-Lynn’s Kiva loan, with Slow Money Hawaii as trustee: https://www.kiva.org/lend/1549507