It's an exciting new way for people to borrow money from other people. The people providing the funding are investors who would like to loan money to creditworthy borrowers.
Borrowers get the recognition for their good credit behaviour by saving with better rates. For investors, it offers an opportunity to invest in a new, attractive fixed income asset class.
"Payday" lenders are generally lenders of last resort. In return for access to short-term credit (about 30 days) and loans that are typically of small nominal value, payday borrowers pay extremely high fees and interest rates.
SocietyOne is not a payday lender. We look for creditworthy, quality borrowers who typically have established relationships with major banks. Our loans range up to 60 months, from $5,000 to $50,000, which does not fit with the definition of a payday loan. We think quality borrowers with good track records are not getting the best rate they deserve.
SocietyOne is not a bank. Marketplace lending provides a different and interesting alternative for creditworthy borrowers and fixed income investors to get a better deal. Part of the attraction is that it can provide better rates and returns without the infrastructure cost and complexity that comes from being a traditional bank or deposit-taking institution.
SocietyOne offers fixed rate personal loans – which means the interest rate doesn’t change during the term of your loan so your repayments will remain the same. In addition we don’t charge early repayment fees if you want to pay off your loan earlier than you originally expected. Variable rate personal loan interest rates may go up and down during the loan term.
SocietyOne offers unsecured loans. That means that you don’t need to provide a deposit or security against the loan in case of default.
Secured loans require you to deposit something of value to the lending institution and this becomes the collateral or security until the loan has been repaid. Examples of collateral include your home, a car, investments or other assets that can be sold by the bank if the loan is unpaid. If the sale doesn't cover the full amount of the loan, you will have lost your asset and still owe money! Secured loans are often lower as they provide less risk to the lender.
At SocietyOne we can offer lower unsecured rates for customers with good credit as this also lowers risk for our investors.
You are eligible for a SocietyOne personal loan if you:
Get your rate now and get started.
SocietyOne's unsecured personal loans range from $5,000 to $50,000 with flexible loan terms of 2, 3 or 5 years.
We charge a one-off establishment fee. This is included in your total loan amount. There are no monthly fees or early repayment fees. So you have the security of a fixed rate loan, with the flexibility to pay it off early.
Please contact customer service on customer.service@societyone.com.au and they will arrange for the I.T department to retrieve the answers for you.
If you have forgotten your username please contact customer service on customer.service@societyone.com.au and they will be able to help you.
SocietyOne takes the privacy of its users and security of information very seriously. Investors can only view limited borrower information necessary for making an investment decision. There is no information available to investors to identify who you are. When you register with SocietyOne, you nominate a username, which provides anonymity to the investors who view your loan.
For more information read our Privacy Policy.
Repayments can be made in either fortnightly or monthly installments, by direct debit.
If you wish to make extra payments, please contact our customer service team on customer.service@societyone.com.au. There are no fees or penalties for making extra payments or paying off your loan early.
If you are experiencing financial hardship and are having difficulty repaying your loan please contact customer service on customer.service@societyone.com.au.
Repayments are calculated depending on your choice of 2,3 or 5 year loan terms, and whether you have chosen fortnightly or monthly repayments along with the interest rate you receive on approval of your loan.
Your loan offer will set out your direct debit repayment schedule and if you require any changes to that schedule, please contact customer service on customer.service@societyone.com.au to discuss.
Yes, absolutely. SocietyOne encourages responsible borrowing and provides repayment flexibility. You can either pay out your loan early or make lump sum payments during the life of your loan with no extra fees or penalty. If you wish to pay off your loan completely then please contact us on customer.service@societyone.com.au so that we can give you an accurate settlement quote.
At SocietyOne there are no fees or penalties for paying out your loan earlier than the scheduled period.
Yes. To do this please contact customer service on customer.service@societyone.com.au.
It’s rare that our customers have issues because of our great low rates and our responsible lending policy, but sometimes there might be reasons that you can’t make repayments - ranging from short-term cash-flow issues to severe financial hardship.
If you are finding it difficult to make a payment, call us immediately. Whether you need short-term or medium-term assistance with your repayments, our customer service team can help. They can discuss options with you which may include flexibility with instalments due, an extension of time to pay or, if your circumstances warrant it, discussing hardship options.
Can I get free independent advice?
If your debts are out of control or you are really struggling to make ends meet, it's important to act quickly. Here are some places you can go for free help and guidance. https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/...
Traditionally, livestock agents, who buy and sell cattle and other livestock on behalf of farmers, have provided working capital to their farmer clients from their own capital or overdraft facilities. SocietyOne AgriLending provides an alternative for agents to fund these transactions by offering lending facilities to livestock agents to help them fund farmers' livestock purchases.
Livestock agents may only use the loan to fund the purchase of traded livestock (cattle, sheep and lambs) for fattening within the loan term.
Currently NSW, WA, QLD, VIC, SA and ACT.
The maximum term is 12 months. There are no prescribed weight targets that have to be met and no sell by dates.
SocietyOne's credit team and loan origination system assesses the creditworthiness of livestock agents using best practice credit assessment techniques. Credit facilities are only given to livestock agents who meet SocietyOne's credit requirements. Once a credit limit is approved the livestock agent may draw down against this facility to purchase livestock. Each draw down is an individual loan on our system.
The target pre-tax return for the loan portfolio is 6.5%-7.5% p.a. (on a blended basis, taking into account lower earnings on investor's cash interests that are awaiting deployment or distribution) based on an investor rate on loans of 7.75% p.a. after fees but before taxes and losses.
Please register your interest in becoming an investor in livestock loans online under the "Invest" tab.
No. Investors are allocated interest in livestock loans on a fractionalised basis. You are unable to choose which specific livestock loans (e.g. cattle or sheep) you invest in.
For all livestock loans, SocietyOne requires the following security:
In some circumstances, after undertaking a credit assessment of the livestock agent, SocietyOne may require additional security, including:
Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags are placed in the cattle's ears. These use electromagnetic fields to wirelessly transfer identification and tracking data from the tags to the National Livestock Identification System database (NLIS) operated by Meat and Livestock Australia. The tags are scanned at the saleyard and linked to the farmer's property identification code (PIC). If cattle are moved from a farmer's property or sold, by law, the changes must be registered on the NLIS.
All livestock buying and selling transactions as well as all monitoring and administrations functions are managed through a centralised settlement office. This also includes all invoice payments when livestock are purchased and loan settlements when livestock are sold.
The settlement office uses its expertise to arrange for completion of documentation, advances funds on receipt of purchase invoices from the sales yards, maintains the required interface with the NLIS and provide signed documentation to SocietyOne.
The interest rate is fixed for the life of the loan. It calculates daily and accrues during the life of the loan.
This investment does not provide a regular or consistent income stream. Interest and capital are repaid upon full or partial (pro rata repayment) sale of the funded livestock. Individual loans have a term of 12 months but may be repaid earlier without penalty.
Your principal will be returned, and interest earnings credited to you upon repayment (in part or in full) of the loan. You may elect to reinvest the principal component in further loans.
From investors, SocietyOne AgriLending receives a Servicer Fee of up to 3.25% p.a. of the amount of the loan for originating and managing the loan through to repayment. The Servicer Fee is deducted from borrowers' repayments before returns are paid to investors.
Borrowers pay an establishment fee of 1% if the loan application is successful and fully funded. This fee is capitalised into the loan and funded by investors.
Livestock loans are not a liquid investment as there is currently no secondary market to sell loans. Loan investments are held for the term of the loan unless the borrower repays early (which they may do without penalty). Each loan has a maximum term of 12 months. On average loans are repaid within 6 to 9 months.
Major risks include a shortfall upon sale of the secured livestock due to lower market prices, which are not adequately offset by the weight gain of the funded herd or loss of livestock through natural causes. Where there are any shortfalls there is recourse back to the livestock agent as borrower on record and the investor is at this point exposed to the credit risk of the borrower. Investors are advised to read and understand the investment Memorandum in detail and in particular the section on risks.
SocietyOne adheres to strict credit control protocols and may pass loans to a collection agency when a borrower is in default. If a borrower does not repay the loan, you may lose your investment in that particular loan.
