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skbasket
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« on: May 18, 2008, 09:46:12 PM » |
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So what do you all think? What are the pros and cons of both. Which do you prefer?
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Sandy
"When I let go of who I am, then I become who I might be."
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Soriak
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« Reply To This #2 on: May 19, 2008, 03:18:22 AM » |
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To shortly summarize:
Individual loan:
Closer connection to the individual entrepreneur
You know exactly what he (or she) is going to do with the money
Group loan:
Lower chance of default (if one member of the group fails to make a payment, the rest of the group is liable for it)
More efficient, which means better conditions for the entrepreneurs (fixed cost of posting and disbursing the loan are shared among many)
No clear description of what everyone is doing, usually only one or two recipients are described. (especially in large groups)
More money is required to fund group loans, so it may take longer for it to be fully funded.
From an emotional point of view, you might prefer individual loans, from a financial pov the group loans make more sense.
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redstarr
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« Reply To This #3 on: May 20, 2008, 12:53:44 PM » |
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I like that group loans are helping spread my loan around to affect more families all at once. If I loan to one person with 4 kids, I'm helping 5 people. But if I loan to a group of ten people and they all have a couple of kids, I'm helping like 30 people.
I like it when the group loans do a great job of expressing what all the different members are going to do with their share (when they're not all spending it on the same thing).
I like that groups help provide support towards success. It helps encourage timely repayment, and they guarantee for each other, so it's less likely the loan will end up defaulted. But also in general, I get the feeling that banding together helps the entrepreneurs encourage each other in their businesses. Running a small business is hard. I bet it's nice to have other people to share your sucess with and to lean on when the going gets rough. Especially like some of the big groups of ladies I've seen from Bolivia. Seems that they have meetings and stuff to support each other and discuss and share business advice. (And yeah, I've got a soft spot in my heart for the "girl power" element that probably comes along with females encouraging each other to be successful and economically independent.)
There's a lot of great individual loans,too,though. It's one of those things where I tend to gravitate a little more to groups, but not all the time.
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KarenS
Kiva Supporter
Michigan
Gender: 
Posts: 21
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« Reply To This #4 on: May 20, 2008, 07:09:59 PM » |
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Newbie here (I've been on Kiva since May 1), and it looks like I've favored individual loans thus far--8 of my loans are to individuals, and only 1 is to a group. I think it was easier to focus on individual loans when I was in my "OMG, Kiva is the Best Thing Ever, who can I send my money to and how fast can I get it there???" mode. After I've settled down, the number of group vs individual loans will probably even out. I like that group loans are helping spread my loan around to affect more families all at once. If I loan to one person with 4 kids, I'm helping 5 people. I look at individual loans a bit differently. My loan might be directly helping just a handful of people, but by lending money to small local businesses, it helps the entire community. This loan: http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=47084is a good example of that, but I believe it holds true even in less obvious cases. |
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« Last Edit: May 20, 2008, 08:36:09 PM by KarenS »
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Jan & John
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« Reply To This #5 on: May 20, 2008, 07:58:45 PM » |
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Welcome Karen - you may be "newbie"  but you found a great loan - I have been looking one in Cameroon for a while now and obviously missed that lady - where was I on May 1? I looked back at my loans and I too began loaning to individuals first - now I really read and compare the stories to find that hidden nugget of information that grabs my attention. However - this one had a photo that caught my eye - a Las Vegas t-shirt... Then it turned out she sold shoes and needed a loan of $1000 which she will use to purchase 3-dozen shoes for her business and also iron roofing for her house.It was the idea of rain coming through the roof of her house if I didn't help out - that sealed the deal http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=42268 jan |
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"The place God calls you to is the place where your deepest gladness and the world's deepest hunger meet" - Fredrick Buechner (in Wishful Thinking). "Every child should be well born, well fed, well taught, well housed and well treated." Maude Riley, Alberta Council on Child and Family Welfare 1923 "Each of us feels that we are just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less without that missing drop." --Mother Teresa 1 click per person per day on this link means 1 additional cent for the Fistula Foundation - thanks! |
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KarenS
Kiva Supporter
Michigan
Gender:
Posts: 21
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« Reply To This #6 on: May 20, 2008, 08:53:00 PM » |
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Thank you, Jan! I guess I was lucky--I found two Cameroon loans that day. One one hand, they were long-term and high-risk. On the other hand, those were exactly the kind of people I had imagined lending money to, when I first heard of microfinance. this one had a photo that caught my eye - a Las Vegas t-shirt... Love it! I was drawn to Ms. Anong's photo. It looked like she was too busy to actually pose, and they had to catch her while she was working and moving and working and moving! |
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redstarr
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« Reply To This #7 on: May 21, 2008, 11:26:15 AM » |
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That is a great loan, Karen.  I wish I'd have seen that one. And I like the idea there of her farming helping make it easier for her whole community to get food. |
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waywardcats
Kiva Supporter
SF Bay Area
Gender:
Posts: 1949
Xania, Crete
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« Reply To This #8 on: May 21, 2008, 11:56:42 AM » |
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Hi Karen, I am on this loan also! And I also picked it because of the community aspects. This loan http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=48791I chose because it implies (thought does not specifically say) that she will be employing another person, so it seemed a good way to help more than one person/family also. I try to keep my portfolio somewhat diverse, so I will do either groups or individual loans. I do tend to prefer small groups though because there seems to be more information in the write-ups. Cheers, -Kerry- |
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"Our daughters can contribute just as much to society as our sons, and our common prosperity will be advanced by allowing all humanity - men and women - to reach their full potential. I do not believe that women must make the same choices as men in order to be equal, and I respect those women who choose to live their lives in traditional roles. But it should be their choice. That is why the United States will partner with any Muslim-majority country to support expanded literacy for girls, and to help young women pursue employment through micro-financing that helps people live their dreams." - President Barack Obama, June 4, 2009
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luckyjudy
Kiva Supporter
Posts: 2
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« Reply To This #9 on: December 10, 2009, 01:24:38 AM » |
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I've tried to put this into one of the existing threads, but was advised to start a new one.
I have only been a member of Kiva for a few months,but am doing my best to diversify and spend a lot of time checking out prospective loans. In the past few months I see a major trend developing--more and more and bigger and bigger groups. As some have mentioned, usually only 1 person is featured in the write-up leaving us to guess what the other plan to do with the funds (unless they are operating a group activity) and requiring a large amount to be raised to fund the loan. Could there not be a limit to the number in a group? Just a thought. Initially I leaned towards groups, but I find they're getting so big now that it is hard to identify with the borrowers.
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