InnovativeFinanceISA.org.uk, an IFISA comparison site, has published an review of LandlordInvest’s IFISA.

The conclusion is that LandlordInvest IFISA offers a good option for those looking for short term investment and as it’s a very simple model that allows investors to get started for as little as £100, it might be good for those looking for their first foray into the world of IFISAs.

The review has been reproduced below and is also available here.

LandlordInvest

LandlordInvest specialises in matching landlords looking for financing with investors looking for a regular monthly income. The majority of loans go to landlords who, despite having a good credit record, are unable to secure traditional forms of funding.

Between them, co-founders, Filip Karadaghi, Nik Smirnovs and Joseph Vallender, have a solid track record in property, investments and venture capital, as well as some practical experience as landlords. Also at the firm are three advisors in the form of Reece Chowdhry, a management consultant and experienced investor, Rishi Khurana, an expert in financing, and Alan Gabbay, a director at O&H Group with an extensive track record in real estate and technology. Clearly, there’s a lot of experience and know-how in this team, but how does it translate when it comes to what LandlordInvest has to offer?

Customer service

The element that stands out most on LandlordInvest’s blue homepage is the claim that investors can ‘earn up to 12% per annum’ – one of the highest potential rates of return we’ve come across in the IFISA market. But the question remains – is that figure actually achievable?

Based on the seven reviews at Smart Money People, it does look like customers are happy with the returns to date. Investors also seem fairly happy with the service they receive from the LandlordInvest team. The only downside appears to be the low availability of investment opportunities. These seem to get filled very quickly, which in itself, says the product is popular among investors.

Being relatively new, the company isn’t listed at Trustpilot.

The stats

• Launched in Dec 2016 – first loan completed Feb 2017
• £2 million invested in the first nine months
• Expected returns of up to 12%
• Secondary market
• No fees
• Monthly interest payments
• Transfer in from existing ISAs
• Minimum investment of £100
• Authorised and regulated by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority)

The Product

LandlordInvest offer a very straightforward product. Once an account is opened, investors can review available loans and choose which ones they want to invest in. Loan parts remain on sale for 14 days and the minimum you can invest is £100. There is a selection of both residential and commercial property backed loans, so diversification is possible to minimise risk. Which as we’ll say later is a good thing. That’s basically all there is to LandlordInvest’s product. Interest is paid monthly, there appear to be no fees (apart from selling on the secondary market) and the rates of return quoted are reassuringly high.

Security

But, as you’d expect, those big returns come with a price in risk. Aside from the fact that the loans are secured with property, there’s very little in way of other protection. For instance, unlike other providers, there’s no provision fund or insurance against defaults or bad debt.

However, the firm is stringent when it comes to assessing borrowers, using the criteria of capacity, character and collateral – an approach commonly used in mortgage underwriting when assessing risk. ‘Capacity’ is an assessment of the borrower’s financial position in order to estimate how much they can safely borrow, ‘character’ is a review of past credit and ‘collateral’ is the loan to value ratio. Investors get access to all this information when it comes to choosing which loans to invest in, so you get to choose which you think are least risky.

Conclusion

There’s no doubt that LandlordInvest is offering some of the best rates in the market, but that does come at price when you consider the potential risk as there is no real provision made for defaults or bad debt. Nevertheless, with interest paid monthly, this will be attractive to those seeking a regular source of income from their investment. Experienced investors will also be attracted to the availability of a secondary market. Just bear in mind, there is a fee of 0.25% to sell a loan or a loan part on the secondary market. LandlordInvest is a good option for those looking for short term investment and as it’s a very simple model that allows you to get started for as little as £100, it might be good for those looking for their first foray into the world of IFISAs. Just be aware of the risks.

Our blogs are for information purposes only. This content is not financial, legal or tax advice. Should you require any advice in relation to the earnings you make from LandlordInvest we recommend seeking independent professional advice. Links to other sites are provided for your convenience but LandlordInvest accepts no responsibility or liability for the content of those sites or of any external site. The information in this blog is correct at the time of posting.