About Crowdestates
What is Crowdestates?
Crowdestates connects individual social impact lenders with communities or companies who are seeking finance for property projects that have a community benefit. Lenders can review and choose the properties and projects they wish to support and lend to through our opportunities page. Once registered with us, they can lend to prospective borrowers in a simple and secure way. Learn more about the lending process in our How it Works section.
Who can we help?
We help communities and ethical developers who are looking to raise capital for property developments which have a positive societal or community benefit. Learn more about how you can register your interest in Borrower section.
We also help social impact investors who are looking to diversify their portfolio with property but do not wish to manage or run the project themselves or do not have sufficient capital to properly diversify across different sectors or projects.
You can choose which opportunities you wish to lend to, and have the chance to construct your own unique portfolio of socially responsible investments based on your lending preferences. Learn more about how you can start investing in our Investors section.
We also help social impact investors who are looking to diversify their portfolio with property but do not wish to manage or run the project themselves or do not have sufficient capital to properly diversify across different sectors or projects.
You can choose which opportunities you wish to lend to, and have the chance to construct your own unique portfolio of socially responsible investments based on your lending preferences. Learn more about how you can start investing in our Investors section.
Investors
Who can invest with Crowdestates?
You can lend through Crowdestates platform if you are 18 or over and have a UK bank account. If you are not from the UK you may be subject to additional checks before you can start lending money. Please click here to create an account.
How does lending work?
Lending works as follows
- We speak to every borrower who wishes to come onto the platform. We select only those borrowers who we believe have a viable exit plan and have a project which benefits the community that needs funding.
- We create an investor info pack for every project, including information from the borrower and external sources and internal analysis of the borrower and opportunity.
- We select only those deals which we believe represent a good financial opportunity with the right return, for the right risk, for the most social impact.
- Before we list the deals on our platform, each project is subject to a range of due diligence including
- An external valuation of the property
- An external project report (if necessary)
- Legal documentation including title searches, company due diligence and appropriate security charges
- We then list those deals on our website for investors to review and choose the deals they would like to fund.
- Investors commit funds to a deal and transfer money to Crowdestates via bank transfer.
- New Crowdestates investors go through our onboarding process which includes verifying their identity and setting up an account.
- Existing lenders can commit the funds immediately.
- If the deal is not fully funded the money will be returned.
- If the deal is fully funded, Crowdestates will finalise all third party due diligence before the money is transferred to the borrower.
- Once the due diligence is completed satisfactorily, the money is released to the borrower.
- If the due diligence is not satisfactory, the lenders will have the option to pull out of the deal.
- The borrower provides regular investment updates for lenders to monitor the progress of the project.
- If the borrower encounters financial difficulties and defaults on the loan, Crowdestates will immediately inform the lenders and may take any of the following steps:
- Liquidate the assets if possible and viable, or
- step-in to take over the development and appoint a professional team to complete the project if possible and viable, and
- Seek to recoup any losses from the project guarantor.
- At the end of the process any recovered funds will be duly returned to the investors
- Investors earn their return as outlined in the investor pack which is paid into the investor account.
- Investors can reinvest their funds in other deals or choose to withdraw the money from the account.
How are the loans secured?
Each loan will be secured on the property for which the loan is being raised. In addition to the asset, the borrower may provide other security if required; for example as a charge over existing business assets, shares or personal guarantees. For each listing, information regarding the security and risk will be provided for investors to review and make their own investment decision. Please note that we do not recommend or advise on individual property investments. If you need further clarifications on a specific listing you can submit your questions to the management team on the listing page.
Does Crowdestates charge the investors any fees?
Crowdestates does not currently charge investors any loan setup, due-diligence or annual account operation fees. If you wish to exit your loan prior to maturity you will charged an exit fee.
Crowdestates are remunerated through fees chargeable to borrowers. These fees will be either 4% of the loan raised or a margin of 2% on the interest rate charged to the borrower.
What are the risks of lending money on the platform?
Please read more about the risks of lending money here.
Do I earn interest on unlent funds in my account?
Currently there is no interest earned on any funds in your account. You can withdraw your payments received at any point.
Can I withdraw my pledge once the loan is fully funded?
You have until the funding completion date to withdraw your funds should you change your mind. Once the loan is fully funded the monies will be released to the borrower subject to extensive due diligence. As part of pledging the funds you accept the loan terms and conditions which are binding for each investor.
When will I receive my loan repayments?
Your loan repayments will be outlined in the information pack and will take place as per the lending terms. There are mainly three types of repayment schedules on a loan:
The repayments will be reflected in your account balance on the dashboard a few days after the money is paid once the payment is processed. In case you wish to withdraw this money you can do so by setting up a transfer through your account. We will transfer the money from the client account to your external bank account once we receive the instructions which can usually take up to 3 working days.
- Interest rolled up - Both interest and principal will be returned when the loan ends.
- Interest only - Interest will be paid regularly over the period of the loan and the principal is returned once the loan ends.
- Repayment basis - Interest and a part of the principal will be returned regularly over the period of the loan until the loan ends.
The repayments will be reflected in your account balance on the dashboard a few days after the money is paid once the payment is processed. In case you wish to withdraw this money you can do so by setting up a transfer through your account. We will transfer the money from the client account to your external bank account once we receive the instructions which can usually take up to 3 working days.
What happens if the borrower falls behind on the repayments?
If the borrower falls behind on the repayments we will contact the borrower immediately to understand the issue and the reason they missed the payment. If the borrower is unable to make timely repayments and falls into arrears due to unforeseen circumstances we might have to amend the terms of the contract to allow the borrowers more time to repay their loans. We will deal with each case according to the guidelines issued by FCA. If we are unable to resolve the issue with the borrower directly we would refer the case to an experienced third party debt collection agency who would contact the borrower and work with them to recover the payments. Lenders have a registered security on the property which can be liquidated to recover any payments in case of default. However, investors should be aware that the loan might not be recovered upon liquidation. Please see risks page for further information
What happens if the borrower defaults?
Property loans are subject to risks. In some cases the borrower may be unable to repay the loan amount if the project does not work as expected. If Crowdestates Ltd takes possession of the property we will liquidate the property to recover the loan monies or appoint a professional team to complete the project. This will be decided on a case-by-case basis. Note that in some cases lenders might not have a senior charge over the property which will change the risk characteristic. Please see the risks page for further information. In all cases the loan monies recovered will be distributed proportionally to the investors based on their share in the loan and after any recovery costs have been settled. We will keep you updated about any properties in default through timely reports published on your account dashboard.
Will I be able to sell the loan before maturity?
At the moment, you will not be able to sell on the loan before maturity. Crowdestates may allow you to do this in the future.
What are the tax implications of lending through peer-to-peer platforms?
You should speak to your tax adviser for any tax implications of lending to individuals or businesses. The information provided below is based on HMRC guidelines and should not be construed as tax advice.
The returns from peer-to-peer agreements are taxable income and the amount the lender is required to declare to HMRC is the full amount of gross interest arising in the tax year. Any tax payable will be on the full interest income arising from the loan without any deductions for lenders fee.
Further HMRC guidance is available here
Any losses made on loans to businesses might be available to offset if the loan cannot be fully recovered.
See further guidance available here.
You can see the gross interest you earn from a loan on the listings page and your account dashboard. Any realised interest during the quarter can be seen on your investor statement available to download on the dashboard itself. Crowdestates do not charge any lenders a fee for servicing the loan.
Please be aware that HMRC could consider you to be be carrying on a trade of money lending if you are lending to a significant number of borrowers as your main course of business. Further HMRC guidance is available here.
The returns from peer-to-peer agreements are taxable income and the amount the lender is required to declare to HMRC is the full amount of gross interest arising in the tax year. Any tax payable will be on the full interest income arising from the loan without any deductions for lenders fee.
Further HMRC guidance is available here
Any losses made on loans to businesses might be available to offset if the loan cannot be fully recovered.
See further guidance available here.
You can see the gross interest you earn from a loan on the listings page and your account dashboard. Any realised interest during the quarter can be seen on your investor statement available to download on the dashboard itself. Crowdestates do not charge any lenders a fee for servicing the loan.
Please be aware that HMRC could consider you to be be carrying on a trade of money lending if you are lending to a significant number of borrowers as your main course of business. Further HMRC guidance is available here.
What fraud checks do you employ on lenders?
We will perform anti-money laundering checks on each investor who registers on the platform. If you wish to know more about our checks please read more about how lending works.
Are Crowdestates regulated?
Peer-to-peer lending is subject to Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulations. We are fully authorised by the FCA. FCA regulations ensure that platforms observe minimum standards to protect both borrower and investor interests.
What if Crowdestates goes out of business?
At Crowdestates, you are lending directly to borrowers where a loan agreement is ratified between you and the borrowers. The loan agreements themselves are not affected if Crowdestates goes out of business.
Crowdestates has appointed a third party to manage all outstanding debts should the platform become insolvent. However, full repayment of the loan is not guaranteed, meaning your capital is still at risk. Please click here to read more
Client Money
Crowdestates takes the handling and processing of our client’s money seriously to ensure that we mitigate the risk of your investment being used for any other purposes. All investors’ money, both via initial deposits and any subsequent repayments, are held and processed through a trust account with the Royal Bank of Scotland. The account was created and will be managed for the specific purpose of ensuring your investment is held safely and securely. The account is also audited annually to confirm client money systems and processes are operating in accordance with relevant regulations.
Definitions and grading system
Creditworthiness
Collateral Risk
This uses credit bureau data to assess the company doing the borrowing, and its directors, or if the company is a ‘special purpose vehicle’ (SPV), the parent or directors of the SPV. Those developers with the very highest creditworthiness are assigned an ‘A’ grading and the lowest would be assigned an ‘E’ grading. Please refer to the table below:
| Risk Level | Risk Grade |
|---|---|
| Very high risk | E |
| High risk | D |
| Moderate risk | C |
| Low Risk | B |
| Very Low Risk | A |
In Collateral risk – we assess a number of factors which are all project related. This covers a wider sense of how likely the project team will be able to achieve the target profit on the project. It takes into account multiple macroeconomic factors such as local market trends that may have a bearing on scenarios. As per ‘creditworthiness’, a grading between ‘A’ and ‘E’ is given to collateral risk. Please refer to the table below:
| Risk Level | Risk Grade |
|---|---|
| Very high risk | E |
| High risk | D |
| Moderate risk | C |
| Low risk | B |
| Very low risk | A |
How do we calculate impact?
We assess each development using our impact scorecard. This examines the environmental and the societal impact of each development using a standardised criteria. This gives us a score which we band using either low, middle or high impact.
How do we calculate interest rate?
We assess each development using four criteria. The first is the credit-worthiness of the borrower which is sourced from a third party credit bureau. The second is the loan to value ratio, the third is the loan to cost ratio. The higher these ratios, the higher the risk to the investors that their money will not be recoverable in full. The final criteria is social impact. The higher the social impact, the lower the interest rate that the borrower will have to pay. We only lend to projects which have a middle or a high social impact.
Borrowers
Who can apply to borrow?
Any company, charity or trust which is looking to raise finance for new projects or property refurbishments in the UK which have a community benefit and a clear exit strategy of how to pay the loan back.
What interest rate do I pay?
The interest rate will be determined based on various factors including market rate, business creditworthiness, the collateral risk, track record and the amount of social impact your project will have. The interest can be rolled up into the loan amount where applicable.
Over what time period can I borrow?
You can borrow from 6 months up to 3 years.
What if an investor I borrow from wants their money back early?
Investors are not currently able to sell their loan through the platform. However, should they do so in future, your loan will not be affected.
What if I fail to raise my desired target?
If you fail to raise your desired target you can resubmit the project at a higher interest rate to attract more lenders. Alternatively, you can reduce the amount of borrowing that you require subject to confirmation from lenders and Crowdestates.
Are there any penalties for early repayment?
There are no penalties for early repayment. However we will require 4 week notice period before any early repayments can be approved. There will be a small admin charge for releasing the title on the asset.
What if I can’t keep up payments on my loan?
If your financial circumstances change you should contact us immediately so that we can work with you to understand your options to avoid repossession of the property. If you can’t keep up with the repayments we will consult with your solicitors as per the legal terms of the loan.
What are Crowdestates fees?
You will be charged a fee of 2% of the loan to be raised plus 3rd party expenses. Borrowers will be given all of the information before committing to a listing. Our fees are not payable if the loan does not complete. Any broker introduction, payment processing fees, anti-money laundering checks, credit checks, legal, external valuation or survey fees as per your unique case may be payable in addition to the platform fee.
What is a credit check and anti-money laundering check?
When you apply to us to raise a loan, we will check the records about you and your financial associates from Credit reference agencies (CRAs) and and Fraud prevention agencies (FPAs). When CRAs receive a quotation search from us they will place a soft search footprint on your credit file that may be seen by other lenders. They supply to us both public (including the electoral register) and shared credit and fraud prevention information.
We will make checks such as assessing your application for credit and verifying director identities to prevent and detect crime and money laundering. We may also make periodic searches at CRAs and FPAs to manage your account with us.
If you are making a joint application or tell us that you have a financial associate, we will link your records together so you must ensure that you have their agreement to disclose information about them. CRAs also link your records together and these links will remain on your and their files until such time as you or your partner successfully files for a disassociation with the CRAs to break that link.
Information on applications will be sent to CRAs and will be recorded by them. Where you borrow from us, we will give details of your accounts and how you manage these accounts to CRAs. If you borrow and do not repay in full and on time, CRAs will record the outstanding debt. This information may be supplied to other organisations by CRAs and FPAs to perform similar checks and to trace your whereabouts and recover debts that you owe. Records remain on file for 6 years after they are closed, whether settled by you or defaulted.
If you give us false or inaccurate information and we suspect or identify fraud we will record this and may also pass this information to FPAs and other organisations involved in crime and fraud prevention. If you have borrowed from us and do not make payments that you owe us, we will trace your whereabouts and recover debts. We and other organisations may access and use from other countries the information recorded by fraud prevention agencies.
Your data may also be used for other purposes for which you give your specific permission or, in very limited circumstances, when required by law or where permitted under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998.
You can contact Equifax if you need more information or check the data they hold about you. They will charge you a small statutory fee.
Further details are provided on Equifax website www.equifax.co.uk.
If you would like to learn more about how your data will be used then please contact us or read our Privacy Policy.
