Comments on: Lending Club Adds Self-Directed IRAs http://www.p2plendingnews.com/2009/03/lending-club-self-directed-ira-retirement-account/ Staying on top of the peer to peer lending revolution Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:35:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Mike http://www.p2plendingnews.com/2009/03/lending-club-self-directed-ira-retirement-account/comment-page-1/#comment-114 Mike Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:51:55 +0000 http://www.p2plendingnews.com/?p=170#comment-114 I participated in Lending Club's pilot program and invested my SIMPLE IRA contribution for 2009 with them. After funding it to the max this year and next (with the over 50 catch up), I'll have $27,000 before returns. I will pay ENTRUST $250 next January to cover both 2009 and 2010. That puts the annual cost in the ballpark of many ETF's at .46%, but still higher than Vanguard Vipers. If you only invest a few thousand dollars, the annual fee will definately reduce your rate of return significantly. In addition to Lending Club's rules for net worth for their lenders, this may be another way of selecting for more serious investors instead of dabblers. I participated in Lending Club’s pilot program and invested my SIMPLE IRA contribution for 2009 with them. After funding it to the max this year and next (with the over 50 catch up), I’ll have $27,000 before returns. I will pay ENTRUST $250 next January to cover both 2009 and 2010. That puts the annual cost in the ballpark of many ETF’s at .46%, but still higher than Vanguard Vipers. If you only invest a few thousand dollars, the annual fee will definately reduce your rate of return significantly. In addition to Lending Club’s rules for net worth for their lenders, this may be another way of selecting for more serious investors instead of dabblers.

]]> By: RobG http://www.p2plendingnews.com/2009/03/lending-club-self-directed-ira-retirement-account/comment-page-1/#comment-84 RobG Thu, 26 Mar 2009 02:22:02 +0000 http://www.p2plendingnews.com/?p=170#comment-84 P2P Lending News: Thank you for sharing the news about this breakthrough new product offering from Lending Club. I want to directly address your comments regarding fees. A flat annual fee of $250 per year after the first year is actually a very competitive fee for a Self-Directed IRA (which is quite different from regular, no-fee IRAs typically offered by brokerage firms). Self-Directed IRAs can support a broad range of asset classes and usually charge an account opening fee (not the case here) and higher annual fees. Also the math is more attractive when you assume a $30k average account size, as opposed a $5k average: we ran a pilot program over the past 2 months and the average dollar amount transferred by lenders from existing IRAs was about $30k. Happy to answer any other questions you may have, and thanks again for covering this new space. Rob Garcia Director of Product Strategy @ Lending Club P2P Lending News:

Thank you for sharing the news about this breakthrough new product offering from Lending Club.

I want to directly address your comments regarding fees. A flat annual fee of $250 per year after the first year is actually a very competitive fee for a Self-Directed IRA (which is quite different from regular, no-fee IRAs typically offered by brokerage firms). Self-Directed IRAs can support a broad range of asset classes and usually charge an account opening fee (not the case here) and higher annual fees. Also the math is more attractive when you assume a $30k average account size, as opposed a $5k average: we ran a pilot program over the past 2 months and the average dollar amount transferred by lenders from existing IRAs was about $30k.

Happy to answer any other questions you may have, and thanks again for covering this new space.

Rob Garcia
Director of Product Strategy @ Lending Club

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