The Group's principal activities are to accept deposits from the general public and utilize those funds in loans, debt obligations which are issued by the United States government and its agencies and mortgage-backed securities. The Group serves individuals and businesses primarily in St. Lawrence and Jefferson Counties in New York State. The Group operates through its subsidiary Gouverneur Savings and Loan Association.
Sector: Financial
Industry: S&Ls/Savings Bank
Employees (last reported count): 33
Fiscal Year End: September
Expanded Information
Gouverneur Bancorp, Inc., organized in 1999, serves as the holding company for Gouverneur Savings and Loan Association (the Bank). The Bank's business consists of gathering deposits from the general public within its market area and investing those deposits primarily in loans, debt obligations issued by the United States government and its agencies, and mortgaged-backed securities. The Bank's loans are mainly residential mortgage loans secured by one- to four-family residences, with the balance of the portfolio composed of commercial mortgage loans, other consumer loans (mostly automobile loans) and other non-real estate commercial loans. Through two full-service branch offices it services a primary market area consisting of St. Lawrence County, Jefferson and Lewis counties in New York State.
Lending Activities
The Bank's loans consist primarily of mortgage loans secured by one- to four-family residences. As of September 30, 2021, it had total loans of $86.35 million, of which $68.7 million, or 79.56%, were one- to four-family, first-lien residential mortgage loans.
The Bank offers a home equity line of credit secured by a residential one- to four-family mortgage, usually a second lien. It offers home equity junior mortgage loans that are fully advanced at closing and repayable in monthly principal and interest installments over a period generally not to exceed 10 years. The Bank has residential single-family construction loans primarily to persons who intend to occupy the property upon completion of construction. The loans automatically convert to regular amortizing loans after construction is complete.
The Bank offers commercial, non-mortgage loans to local businesses for working capital, machinery and equipment purchases, expansion and other business purposes. These loans generally have higher yields than mortgages loans, and include equipment installment financing with terms that generally do not exceed seven years, short-term working capital loans and commercial lines of credit with annual reviews. The Bank also offers Commercial Mortgage Loans and Lines of Credit, with loan to value ratios up to 70%, with fixed and adjustable rates. Commercial loans totaled $9.75 million at September 30, 2021.
The Bank makes fixed-rate consumer loans secured by savings accounts or other consumer assets. It has auto loans for both new and used cars. At September 30, 2021, the Bank held $3.03 million total consumer and auto loans.
Investment Activities
Fair value of the Bank's investment securities totaled $24.62 million as of September 30, 2021, including $24.61 million classified as available for sale and $0.002 million classified as held to maturity. It invests primarily in general obligation municipal bonds and debt securities issued by the United States government and its agencies and mortgage-backed securities issued or guaranteed by government-sponsored enterprises. The Bank has classified all recent purchases of investment securities as available for sale in order to maintain flexibility in managing its investments. It purchases only investment-grade debt securities, and, as of September 30, 2021, none of its investment securities were in default or otherwise classified.
Sources of Funds
The Bank offers several types of deposit programs to its customers, including passbook savings accounts, NOW accounts, money market deposit accounts, checking accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs). The Bank's deposits are obtained predominantly from its primary market area. As September 30, 2021, it had $100.75 million of deposits.
All financial information was provided by the Gouverneur Bancorp, Inc. 2021 Annual Report.
