COMMUNITY BANKS OF COLORADO
262 PAGOSA STREET, PAGOSA SPRINGS, CO
In one of my earlier Blog Articles last month I mentioned the Bank Ratings of a couple of our local lending institutions. Shortly after I launched that article on the Blog Site, a former member of the local lending scene was shut down and its deposits, loans and non-performing assets were transferred to another bank.
Community Banks of Colorado began lending in our area in 2001 from their office in Durango, Colorado. Eventually, during a growth period they decided they should open a branch here in Pagosa Springs, eventually opening a total of 40 banking locations. For several years they were located on the street level of the Town Terrace Building at 262 Pagosa Street, just east of the former Victoria’s Restaurant Building. They never really had much impact in the local market and being a relatively late entrant to the real estate boom period here, they didn’t capture the best of the available lending business. When they began to grow their lending activities in our area they were competing with more established lenders, many of which had the best business tied up. Community Banks of Colorado found itself bidding for business from the riskier developers and marginal projects that were looking for construction financing in 2005-2007. Pagosa Springs, Colorado properties within Town Terrace and Aspen Village were financed by Community Banks of Colorado as well as other smaller speculative housing projects.
While things were booming here in Southwest Colorado, management of Community Banks of Colorado decided to expand further west and went on a buying binge in Central California. At the time the housing market was exploding with an abundance of new large housing tracts attracting homebuyers commuting into the San Francisco Bay Area in order to find affordable housing. It seemed as though the market would continue to grow, but shortly after moving into the area, the market started to slow down and then came to a complete stand still.
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Mike-
Great article on the Zombie Bank. I wondered what happened to them fellars. My brother Daryl heard they left the area with their tail between their legs. Its too bad, I hate to see anybody lose their money. I am glad their depositors didn’t get burned.
Keep up the good writin!