City Bank vs Herring Bank

As of Q1 2026, City Bank carries a larger commercial real estate loan book than Herring Bank, roughly 7.0× the size — $1.6B versus $222.8M. 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.

Both banks are letting their CRE books contract quarter over quarter — City Bank is down 0.5% and Herring Bank is down 0.6%. A shrinking CRE book can signal a lender in run-off mode, tightening credit standards, or working through past-due loans, all of which can make a new loan harder to place.

Neither bank has run past the 300% CRE concentration guideline — City Bank is at 214% and Herring Bank at 249%. Banks well below the guideline typically have more room to keep adding commercial real estate loans, which tends to mean more competitive pricing and terms for borrowers.

Both books look healthy on asset quality — nonaccrual CRE loans sit below 0.5% of the CRE book at each bank (0% for City Bank, 0% for Herring 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 — 28 recent for City Bank and 2 for Herring Bank. City 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: City Bank runs the larger CRE book, Herring Bank is the one still expanding. 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.