Version 1.6.5: Similar Loans

First.. if you are new... please do download and install. Then when visiting the Prosper web page, wherever you see the magic wand click it or hover over it to find what additional functionality I've added there. Feel free to ask questions.

This release brings the ability to review loans that are similar to the listing you are reviewing. I have been using this to better understand the likelihood of the borrower going late. By comparing loans that have defaulted or gone late to the current listing in question I feel I have significantly improved my selection process.

So how does it work? Well at the top of the listing detail page you will find a new link in the Market Analysis area called Similar Loans. Click on this and a new window opens that looks like this:





At the top of the page is a reminder of the listing you are reviewing. All of the magic wand quick links work. Below this is the set of loans similar to the listing. For now the similarity is limited to credit grade and the listing's loan amount +/- $2000. The loans are sorted with the more recent loans first. Displayed for each loan is the status and loan origination date. Again all of the magic wands work.

How do I use this feature? When reviewing a listing, I click on the Broad and Similar Loan links. Doing this will open 2 new windows. I use the Broad performance page to get a general idea of the overall performance of this size of loan. Then I drill down into the similar loan page. If there are a lot of loans that are late or defaulted, I will most likely pass. Otherwise I start clicking on the magic wand to review the credit info for each of the late loans.

And I've also added to the listing detail and search result pages a magic wand next to the group. This will display the key performance numbers for the group. Very enlightening!