The following table shows the activity in foreclosed properties for the quarter ended (dollars in thousands):
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | December 31, | | September 30, | | June 30, | | March 31, | | December 31, |
| | 2021 | | 2021 | | 2021 | | 2021 | | 2020 |
Beginning Balance | | $ | 1,696 | | $ | 1,696 | | $ | 2,344 | | $ | 2,773 | | $ | 4,159 |
Additions of foreclosed property | | | — | | | — | | | 14 | | | — | | | — |
Valuation adjustments | | | — | | | — | | | — | | | — | | | (35) |
Proceeds from sales | | | — | | | — | | | (572) | | | (419) | | | (1,357) |
Gains (losses) from sales | | | — | | | — | | | (90) | | | (10) | | | 6 |
Ending Balance | | $ | 1,696 | | $ | 1,696 | | $ | 1,696 | | $ | 2,344 | | $ | 2,773 |
Past Due Loans
Past due loans still accruing interest totaled $29.9 million or 0.23% of total loans held for investment at December 31, 2021, compared to $38.8 million or 0.30% of total loans held for investment at September 30, 2021, and $49.8 million or 0.36% of total loans held for investment at December 31, 2020. Of the total past due loans still accruing interest, $9.1 million or 0.07% of total loans held for investment were loans past due 90 days or more at December 31, 2021, compared to $11.0 million or 0.08% of total loans held for investment at September 30, 2021, and $13.6 million or 0.10% of total loans held for investment at December 31, 2020.
Net Charge-offs
Net charge-offs totaled $511,000 or 0.02% of total average loans on an annualized basis for the quarter ended December 31, 2021, compared to $113,000 or less than 0.01% for the third quarter of 2021, and $1.8 million or 0.05% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Provision for Credit Losses
For the quarter ended December 31, 2021, the Company recorded a negative provision for credit losses of $1.0 million, compared to a negative provision for credit losses of $18.8 million in the previous quarter, and a negative provision for credit losses of $13.8 million recorded during the same quarter in 2020. The provision for credit losses for the fourth quarter of 2021 reflected a negative provision of $1.5 million for loan losses and a provision of $500,000 for unfunded commitments.
Allowance for Credit Losses
At December 31, 2021, the ACL was $107.8 million and included an allowance for loan and lease losses (“ALLL”) of $99.8 million and a reserve for unfunded commitments (“RUC”) of $8.0 million. The ACL at December 31, 2021 decreased $1.5 million from September 30, 2021 due to lower expected losses than previously estimated as a result of ongoing economic improvements, benign credit quality metrics to date, risk rating upgrades during the quarter, and a positive macroeconomic outlook, and was comprised of a $2.0 million decrease in the ALLL and a $500,000 increase in the RUC.
The ACL as a percentage of total loans decreased slightly to 0.82% at December 31, 2021, compared to 0.83% at September 30, 2021. The ALLL as a percentage of the total loan portfolio was 0.76% at December 31, 2021 and 0.77% at September 30, 2021.
NONINTEREST INCOME
Noninterest income increased $6.5 million to $36.4 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021 from $29.9 million in the prior quarter, primarily driven by a $5.1 million gain from the sale of Visa, Inc. Class B common stock and increases in several other noninterest income categories, partially offset by a $1.5 million decline in mortgage banking income reflecting the seasonal drop in mortgage loan origination volumes in the fourth quarter of 2021. The other noninterest income increases from the prior quarter include an increase of $937,000 in unrealized gains on equity method investments, a seasonal increase of $610,000 in service charges on deposit accounts, a $559,000 increase in bank owned life insurance revenue, an increase of $341,000 in loan interest rate swap fee income, and additional asset management fees of $210,000 due to growth in assets under management in the fourth quarter.