Alpine Bank vs Southside Bank

As of Q1 2026, Southside Bank carries a larger commercial real estate loan book than Alpine Bank, roughly 1.7× the size — $3.4B versus $2.0B. CRE book size is one gauge of how much lending capacity a bank is actively deploying, though a bigger book is not automatically better for a borrower; what matters is whether the bank is still growing that book and how concentrated it has become.

Their trajectories diverge: Southside Bank is growing its CRE book (4.1% quarter over quarter) while Alpine Bank is contracting (0.0%). For a borrower weighing the two, the expanding lender is the more likely to be competing for new business right now.

Southside Bank is further up the concentration curve at 300% — past the 300% supervisory guideline — while Alpine Bank sits lower at 194% with more balance-sheet capacity to keep lending. A borrower may find the less-concentrated bank more receptive to new credit, though concentration is only one of several appetite signals.

Both books look healthy on asset quality — nonaccrual CRE loans sit below 0.5% of the CRE book at each bank (0% for Alpine Bank, 0% for Southside Bank). Low nonaccrual levels suggest the existing portfolio is performing and the bank is not preoccupied with problem-loan management.

County recorded documents show both lenders actively closing commercial loans — 6 recent for Alpine Bank and 18 for Southside Bank. Southside Bank shows the heavier recent activity in the records we track. Filed deeds of trust are the ground truth of a closed, secured loan, so a presence here confirms the bank is writing business, not just quoting it.

The short version: Southside Bank runs the larger CRE book. The right lender for any specific deal still depends on property type, sponsorship, and the current terms each is quoting — the table above and each bank's full profile carry the detail.