Dates & Times
October 20, 2026
9am-4pm
Registration Options
Member Fee: $265 (In-Person); $365 (Live Stream); $530 (Recording); $100 Add On Recording with In-Person or Live Stream Registration
Non-Member Fee: $465 (In-Person); $565 (Live Stream); $730 (Recording); $100 Add On Recording with In-Person or Live Stream Registration
Please note: If you participate in-person or by live stream via Zoom, we will email a certificate to you following the program. Certificates will only be emailed to registered attendees. If you register for the recording, we will not be able to provide a certificate because we will not be able to track attendance.
Click here for tips if participating in the live streamed seminar.
Overview
Tomorrow’s problem loans are likely to be in our loan portfolios today. Therefore, it is important to learn how to detect and deal with potential problems, regardless of where we are in the business cycle. And, because bankers cannot totally avoid risk, we must learn to manage problem loans within the appropriate risk/reward profile.
This program provides an overview of four critical areas for bankers to understand about problem borrowers and bankruptcies:
- What are the early warning signals (EWS) that matter? (Most EWS lists are lengthy itemizations of any adverse changes in the borrower’s financial statements and/or the various underwriting ratios that lenders monitor. This program offers a more concise and more manageable approach.)
- Once the problem is evident, what are the next steps that the banker must consider? What are your options? For instance, what are the pros and cons of having the lender or relationship manager continue to manage things versus a problem loan specialist?
- What are the basics (terminology and principles) of bankruptcy? Do you know what preference items are? A 341 Hearing?
- How do lender liability lawsuits arise? How can you avoid them?
Topics Include:
- Identifying unconventional early warning signals based on the most common types of commercial loans, both C&I and CRE
- Explaining other conventional or traditional early warning signals and “top six” situations to avoid
- Describing potential defenses that guarantors can raise in almost any situation
- Utilizing your bank’s risk ratings for problem loans
- Itemizing key elements of a workout strategy that works
- Identifying the basics of bankruptcy and the basics of lender liability
- Describing five practical workout steps and tips
- On the consumer side
- An older, but still in place and relevant, regulatory approach to defining and categorizing problem consumer loans (the Uniform Retail Credit Classification an Account Management Policy or URCCAMP)
- Key steps in the consumer collection process
- Appendix: Overview and issues with real estate foreclosures
Who Will Benefit
Branch managers, consumer lenders, mortgage bankers, private bankers, small business lenders, commercial lenders, credit analysts, loan review specialists, special assets officers, lending managers and credit officers involved in either (or both) consumer and business lending.
Instructor
Richard Hamm has been training bankers for 30+ years, designing and delivering programs specializing in commercial lending and credit, including portfolio and risk management, commercial real estate (CRE) and appraisals, plus selling and negotiating skills, and director training. He is based in Huntsville, AL and has owned/operated Advantage Consulting & Training for 15+ years, after a 22-year banking career including senior positions in lending and credit, plus president of a community bank through formation and acquisition of an existing bank. During his banking career he was active within RMA’s chapter structure, plus serving on several committees at the national level. He has written over 20 articles for The RMA Journal and still serves on The Journal’s Editorial Advisory Board. He has created several courses for RMA, including the first versions of Global Cash Flow and Construction Loan Administration. He has also been involved in updating, editing and teaching most of RMA’s commercial real estate courses. In 2010 he served as subject matter expert for RMA’s e-learning/online The Commercial Real Estate Lending Decision Process curriculum. In 2012 Richard edited, updated and revised ABA’s long-standing textbooks Commercial Lending and Analyzing Financial Statements, as well as provided content for an electronic curriculum based on both books. The content was again updated in winter 2018-2019 and winter 2019-2020 to add content on fraud and anti-money laundering, asset-based lending and CRE lending. Starting in 2016, he has been facilitating periodic “senior lender forums” for state banking and community banking associations, currently with eight groups across three states, as well as quarterly and annual senior lender events for the Barret School of Banking. He has BS and MBA degrees from the University of Alabama.
Additional Information
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