With tough economic times bearing down on investors and lenders worldwide, more and more people are turning away from conventional investment plans with banks. Specifically there has been a growing trend towards peer to peer lending (or micro lending) services, whereby investors directly lend money to people and businesses in need of a loan. The draw of these enterprises lies in the immediate contact with borrowers; most peer to peer lending sites offer brief profiles, descriptions, or synopses of the lender’s situation so you know exactly who you’re investing in. Here are three of the more respected peer to peer lending sites, with a brief overview of what each site has to offer.

Prosper

Prosper is perhaps the most trusted peer to peer lending website, with a strong focus on connecting lenders with their ideal borrower. For those looking to invest, you have a variety of lending options to choose from. Ambitious lenders can invest a large amount of money with few borrowers with a huge interest rate with the “Quick Invest” option. You can few borrowing candidates of these Quick Investments by browsing the informative profiles of potential borrowers. Most profiles include a brief description of their financial situation and a rating that determines the likelihood that your borrower will make good on their repayment of your loan. If you’re more concerned with diversifying your portfolio so as to protect against loan defaults, you can opt to invest in small quantities for any number of lenders through the “Trade Notes” method. With so many lending options, an investor is bound to find an attractive enterprise to fund.

Lending Club

Like with Prosper, Lending Club seeks to cut out the fees and complexities associated with investment through major banks, connecting a lender with a qualified borrower. Without the profit-seeking meddling from banks, Lending Club offers better rates for borrowers and high returns for investors. People looking to take out loans would particularly benefit from Lending Club, as the promise of a loan with a reasonable fixed rate can be made a reality in just a short time. All you need to do is set up a profile with Lending Club, a process which only takes a matter of minutes. Most borrowers utilize the service to pay off debts or help manage a mortgage, but there’s no set rule for the type of loan you can request. If you’re on the other side of things as a lender, you can browse through these loan requests and determine who you want to invest in, and what amount. There’s no pressure to fund a loan in full, you can be a part of a host of lenders who collectively fund someone’s loan.

Kiva

A more charitable peer lending service, Kiva brings lenders together with people truly in financial need from all over the world. Kiva allows lenders to make a meaningful impact in the lives of individuals seeking loans for projects ranging from farming enterprises to the support of active charity organizations in struggling communities. To join as a lender, simply set up a profile with Kiva to begin browsing through loan requests from over 60 different countries. Though some investors may be intimidated with the prospect of investing in people from around the world, the site boasts a repayment rate of 98.87%–nothing to scoff at.

Mariana Ashley is a freelance writer who particularly enjoys writing about online colleges. She loves receiving reader feedback, which can be directed to mariana.ashley031@gmail.com.