The one lesson you should have learned in 2015, but most investors really haven’t paid attention to is the proliferation of alternative investments that have nothing to do with traditional stocks and bonds. Since the collapse of the banks, real estate, and stock market in 2008, most investors have paid their primary attention to the stock market and real estate rebound while also waiting for the Fed to raise interest rates. Has anybody paid attention to the growth of alternative opportunities that can invest in right on the internet?
- The Peer To Peer Microloan Market- While investors have been struggling to get decent returns in the bond market or find good investment grade yielding bonds, the peer to peer microloan market has grown by leaps and bounds. Companies such as www.lendingclub.com and www.propser.com offer the opportunity for you to manage your own portfolio of loans between you and individuals typically looking to borrow between 0 to $30,000. Will you be better off in the future with an investment grade corporate bond fund or should you consider your investment grade peer to peer microloan portfolio? Or perhaps some of both.
- The B 2 B Loan Market- With most small business owners practically having to give up their right arm and left leg as collateral for getting a loan from the bank and SBA loans getting tighter and tighter, where is a new business owner turn to for acquiring capital. While crowdfunding is a neat idea, there are new websites cropping up such as www.streetshares.com where you can diversify out or ladder out your own lending portfolio to businesses.
- Real Estate Market- As the real estate market has been growing, investment such as REIT’s may not be the only option out there as a possible investment. Websites such as www.patchofland.com is a peer to peer lending website for the real estate market. It even offers the opportunity for first position liens.
As the traditional stock and bond markets become more and more challenging to decipher, perhaps in 2016 you might want consider these other interesting options.
Written by:
Ted Jenkin
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Ted Jenkin is a frequent guest columnist for the Wall Street Journal and Headline News Weekend Express. He is the co-CEO of oXYGen Financial. You can follow him on LinkedIn @ www.linkedin.com/in/theceoadvisor or on Twitter @tedjenkin.
