COMMUNITY BANCORP VT

Credit Quality Grouping

In developing the ACL, management uses credit quality groupings to help evaluate trends in credit quality. The Company groups credit risk into Groups A, B and C. The manner the Company utilizes to assign risk grouping is driven by loan purpose. Commercial purpose loans are individually risk graded while the retail portion of the portfolio is generally grouped by delinquency pool.

Group A loans - Pass** **– are loans that are expected to perform as agreed under their respective terms. Such loans carry a normal level of risk that does not require management attention beyond that warranted by the loan or loan relationship characteristics, such as loan size or relationship size. Group A loans include commercial purpose loans that are individually risk rated and retail loans that are rated by pool. Group A retail loans include performing consumer and residential real estate loans. Residential real estate loans are loans to individuals secured by 1-4 family homes, including first mortgages, home equity and home improvement loans. Loan balances fully secured by deposit accounts or that are fully guaranteed by the federal government are considered acceptable risk.

Group B loans – Special Mention - are loans that require greater attention than the acceptable risk loans in Group A. Characteristics of such loans may include, but are not limited to, borrowers that are experiencing negative operating trends such as reduced sales or margins, borrowers that have exposure to adverse market conditions such as increased competition or regulatory burden, or borrowers that have had unexpected or adverse changes in management. These loans have a greater likelihood of migrating to an unacceptable risk level if these characteristics are left unchecked. Group B is limited to commercial purpose loans that are individually risk rated.

Group C loans – Substandard/Doubtful – are loans that have distinct shortcomings that require a greater degree of management attention. Examples of these shortcomings include a borrower’s inadequate capacity to service debt, poor operating performance, or insolvency. These loans are more likely to result in repayment through collateral liquidation. Group C loans range from those that are likely to sustain some loss if the shortcomings are not corrected, to those for which loss is imminent and non-accrual treatment is warranted. Group C loans include individually rated commercial purpose loans and retail loans adversely rated in accordance with the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s Uniform Retail Credit Classification Policy. Group C retail loans include 1-4 family residential real estate loans and home equity loans past due 90 days or more with loan-to-value ratios greater than 60%, home equity loans 90 days or more past due where the Bank does not hold first mortgage, irrespective of loan-to-value, loans in bankruptcy where repayment is likely but not yet established, and lastly consumer loans that are 90 days or more past due.

Commercial purpose loan ratings are assigned by the commercial account officer; for larger and more complex commercial loans, the credit rating is a collaborative assignment by the lender and the credit analyst. The credit risk rating is based on the borrower’s expected performance, i.e., the likelihood that the borrower will be able to service its obligations in accordance with the loan terms. Credit risk ratings are meant to measure risk versus simply record history. Assessment of expected future payment performance requires consideration of numerous factors. While past performance is part of the overall evaluation, expected performance is based on an analysis of the borrower’s financial strength, and historical and projected factors such as size and financing alternatives, capacity and cash flow, balance sheet and income statement trends, the quality and timeliness of financial reporting, and the quality of the borrower’s management. Other factors influencing the credit risk rating to a lesser degree include collateral coverage and control, guarantor strength and commitment, documentation, structure and covenants and industry conditions. There are uncertainties inherent in this process.

Credit risk ratings are dynamic and require updating whenever relevant information is received. Risk ratings are assessed on an ongoing basis and at various points, including at delinquency or at the time of other adverse events. For larger, more complex or adversely rated loans, risk ratings are also assessed at the time of annual or periodic review. Lenders are required to make immediate disclosure to the Chief Credit Officer of any known increase in loan risk, even if considered temporary in nature.

The risk ratings within the loan portfolio and current period gross charge-offs, by loan segment and origination year were as follows:

As of or for the year ended, December 31, 2023, there were (i) no current period gross charge-offs within the Purchased, CRE, Municipal and Residential real estate Jr lien loan segments, (ii) no Special mention loans within the Residential real estate Jr line loan segment and (iii) no Special mention or Substandard/Doubtful loans within the Purchased, Municipal and Consumer loan segments.

Before the adoption of ASC 326 (CECL), the risk ratings within the loan portfolio, by segment, as of December 31, 2022 were as follows:

The following table presents the amortized cost basis of collateral-dependent loans as of December 31, 2023, by collateral type:

(1) Including, but not limited to, inventory, equipment, and accounts receivable, but excluding real estate.