ATHENS BANCSHARES CORPORATION
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 4. | LOANS AND ALLOWANCE FOR LOAN LOSSES (Continued) |
Portfolio Segmentation (Continued)
Commercial Real Estate and Multi-Family: Commercial real estate and multi-family loans include owner-occupied commercial real estate loans, owner-occupied construction loans for commercial businesses, and loans secured by income producing properties. Owner-occupied commercial real estate loans to operating businesses are long-term financing of land and buildings. Owner-occupied construction loans for a commercial business are for the development of land or construction of a building. Both of these loans are repaid by cash flow generated from the business operation. Real estate loans for income-producing properties such as apartment buildings, office and industrial buildings, and retail shopping centers are repaid from rent income derived from the properties. Loans within this segment are particularly sensitive to the valuation of real estate.
Construction and Land: Loans for real estate construction and land development are repaid through cash flow related to the operations, sale or refinance of the underlying property. This portfolio segment includes extensions of credit to real estate developers or investors where repayment is dependent on the sale of the real estate or income generated from the real estate collateral. Loans within this portfolio segment are particularly sensitive to the valuation of real estate.
Commercial: The commercial loan portfolio segment includes commercial and financial loans. These loans include those loans to commercial customers for use in normal business operations to finance working capital needs, equipment purchases, or expansion projects. Loans are repaid by business cash flows. Collection risk in this portfolio is driven by the creditworthiness of the underlying borrower, particularly cash flows from the customers’ business operations.
Consumer and Other: The consumer loan portfolio segment includes direct consumer installment loans, overdrafts and other revolving credit loans, and educational loans. Loans in this portfolio are sensitive to unemployment and other key consumer economic measures.
Credit Risk Management
The Company employs a credit risk management process with defined policies, accountability and routine reporting to manage credit risk in the loan portfolio segments. Credit risk management is guided by credit policies that provide for a consistent and prudent approach to underwriting and approval of credits. Within the Loan Policy, procedures exist that elevate the approval requirements as credits become larger and more complex. All loans are individually underwritten, risk-rated, approved, and monitored.
Responsibility and accountability for adherence to underwriting policies and accurate risk ratings lie in each portfolio segment. For the consumer portfolio segment, the risk management process focuses on managing customers who become delinquent in their payments. For the commercial and real estate portfolio segments, the risk management process focuses on underwriting new business and, on an ongoing basis, monitoring the credit of the portfolios, including a third party review of the largest credits on an annual basis or more frequently as needed. Credit quality and trends in the loan portfolio segments are measured and monitored regularly. Detailed reports, by product, collateral, accrual status, etc., are reviewed by the Directors Loan Committee.
The allowance for loan losses is a valuation reserve allowance established through provisions for loan losses charged against income. The allowance for loan losses, which is evaluated quarterly, is maintained at a level that management deems sufficient to absorb probable losses inherent in the loan portfolio. Loans deemed to be uncollectible are charged against the allowance for loan losses, while recoveries of previouslycharged-off amounts are credited to the allowance for loan losses. The allowance for loan losses is comprised of specific valuation allowances for loans evaluated individually for impairment, general allocations for pools of homogeneous loans with similar risk characteristics and trends, and an unallocated component that reflects the margin of imprecision inherent in the underlying assumptions used in the methodologies for estimating specific and general losses in the portfolio.
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