Commitments and Contingencies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Correspondent Banking Agreements - The Bank maintains funds on deposit with other federally insured financial institutions under correspondent banking agreements. Uninsured deposits totaled $3,813,000 at December 31, 2023.

Financial Instruments With Off-Balance-Sheet Risk - The Bank is a party to financial instruments with off-balance-sheet risk in the normal course of business in order to meet the financing needs of its customers and to reduce its own exposure to fluctuations in interest rates. These financial instruments consist of commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. These instruments involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit and interest rate risk in excess of the amount recognized on the balance sheet.

The Bank’s exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the other party for commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments. The Bank uses the same credit policies in making commitments and standby letters of credit as it does for loans included on the balance sheet.

The following financial instruments represent off-balance-sheet credit risk (in thousands):


	December 31,
	2023		2022
Commitments to extend credit	$	274,282	$	286,925
Standby letters of credit	$	1,988	$	1,216

Commitments to extend credit consist primarily of unfunded commercial loan commitments and revolving lines of credit, single-family residential equity lines of credit and commercial and residential real estate construction loans. Construction loans are established under standard underwriting guidelines and policies and are secured by deeds of trust, with disbursements made over the course of construction. Commercial revolving lines of credit have a high degree of industry diversification. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being fully drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. Standby letters of credit are generally secured and are issued by the Bank to guarantee the financial obligation or performance of a customer to a third party. The credit risk involved in issuing standby letters of credit is essentially the same as that involved in extending loans to customers. The fair value of the liability related to these standby

letters of credit, which represents the fees received for issuing the guarantees, was not significant at December 31, 2023 and 2022. The Company recognizes these fees as revenue over the term of the commitment or when the commitment is used.

At December 31, 2023, commercial loan commitments represent 47% of total commitments and are generally secured by collateral other than real estate or unsecured. Real estate loan commitments represent 49% of total commitments and are generally secured by property with a loan-to-value ratio not to exceed 80%. Consumer loan commitments represent the remaining 4% of total commitments and are generally unsecured. In addition, the majority of the Bank’s loan commitments have variable interest rates.

At December 31, 2023 and 2022, the balance of a contingent allocation for probable loan loss experience on unfunded obligations was $839,000 and $110,000, respectively. The contingent allocation for probable loan loss experience on unfunded obligations is calculated by management using an appropriate, systematic, and consistently applied process. While related to credit losses, this allocation is not a part of the allowance for credit losses and is considered separately as a liability for accounting and regulatory reporting purposes. Changes in this contingent allocation are recorded in other non-interest expense.

Concentrations of Credit Risk - At December 31, 2023, in management’s judgment, a concentration of loans existed in commercial loans and real-estate-related loans, representing approximately 95.5% of total loans of which 10.7% were commercial and 84.8% were real-estate-related.

At December 31, 2022, in management’s judgment, a concentration of loans existed in commercial loans and real-estate-related loans, representing approximately 96.8% of total loans of which 14.1% were commercial and 82.7% were real-estate-related.

Management believes the loans within these concentrations have no more than the typical risks of collectability. However, in light of the current economic environment, additional declines in the performance of the economy in general, or a continued decline in real estate values or drought-related decline in agricultural business in the Company’s primary market area could have an adverse impact on collectability, increase the level of real-estate-related nonperforming loans, or have other adverse effects which alone or in the aggregate could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Company.

Contingencies - The Company is subject to legal proceedings and claims which arise in the ordinary course of business. In the opinion of management, the amount of ultimate liability with respect to such actions will not materially affect the consolidated financial position or consolidated results of operations of the Company.

Investments in Low Income Housing Tax Credit Funds - The unfunded commitments as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 in low income housing tax credit funds were $4,371,000 and $4,949,000, respectively. All commitments will be paid by the Company by 2038.