Fullerton S&L; Shifts Focus

Fullerton Savings & Loan, once a throwback to the movie screen version of Bailey Bros. Building & Loan in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” is changing to be more like a commercial bank.

Capping a year of planning and hiring, the thrift that once made only home loans said Thursday it will change its name to Fullerton Community Bank and offer a complete line of bank products, such as auto and consumer loans. It already has introduced business checking accounts, payroll services and commercial loans.

“North Orange County needs a quality, community-based, locally owned bank with the emphasis on the customer and the community,” said Carl W. Gregory, the S&L;’s president.

Because it intends to retain its S&L; charter--at least until Congress decides whether to turn such founding documents into bank charters--the Fullerton thrift must keep 70% of its $270 million in assets devoted to home loans and mortgage financings.

The thrift, formed in 1927, is owned almost entirely by local residents and gets most of its deposits from communities around its seven Orange County branches, rare among Southern California financial institutions.