Oregon Bank Takes Mortgage-Linked Charges

West Coast Bancorp, Lake Oswego, Ore., has announced that it will record a $30 million pretax provision for credit losses in the fourth quarter, including $27.8 million related to expected losses in the company's two-step residential construction loan portfolio. The company said it expects to take a loss of $0.46-0.50 per share for the quarter. Under the two-step program, discontinued in October, the bank made initial construction financing loans to individuals, while the secondary, or "take-out," financing usually came from third parties. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.wcb.com.