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If you haven’t heard of Prosper.com, it is “where people come together to borrow and lend money.”

Making money with Prosper does require some startup capital, but can be very lucrative. All pictures are screenshots from my account.

Here is how to make money with Prosper.

1. Open an account.

Creating an account is easy and free. Here is the signup page.

2. Join my group.

Groups are about more than just community. You will be following my lead and the lead of other group members. When group members are bidding, you should bid as well. Of course that person could still default, but when everyone is doing their due diligence, everyone wins.

3. Deposit money.

When I first started, I deposited $250. That was going to be my total investment. Now after almost a full year, I have over $1000 invested in Prosper and am adding more monthly. You can start with whatever you feel comfortable with. The minimum amount you can bid on any one loan is $50.

4. Find a loan you like.

I like small loans at decent rates. I’m looking for borrowers who are asking for between $1000 and $5000. These borrowers should be asking for between 8% and 29%. I’ve found that borrowers who are asking for a small amount tend to pay it back and don’t default as often as people asking for $15-25,000. That is why my group is for people who are asking for loans under $5000.

5. Lend money.

Choose how much you want to lend, and click the “Confirm Bid” button.  I try to make at least one loan per month on the payments and interest I receive.  As you can see, my cash balance is currently $24.61.  Once it gets to $50,  I’ll make another loan.

6. Cash in!

You have now helped another fellow American and should feel good about yourself. Don’t forget, you’re also making much more than you will in your ING Direct account (currently at 4.5%).  There are people lending on Prosper who have hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Many people will even lend $2000+ on one loan!

Here are my current stats for Prosper.

As you can see I haven’t had any defaults and have an average APY of 12.29%!

Prosper is a great way to diversify and get more than you could in a regular savings account! If you have questions about Prosper, just post a comment!