St George drags down Westpac credit quality 18 May 2010 4:41PM Ian Rogers The half-year profit report for Westpac, published two weeks ago, already made it clear that the commercial property loan portfolio of St George was a drag on asset quality over the period. The bank's "pillar 3" report for the March 2010 quarter provides some further insight into the problem.About half the rise in impaired loans at Westpac (of $525 million to $4.3 billion) emerged through what the bank describes as its "standardised" portfolio over the March 2010 half. These loans are all loans of the bank's St George brand.More than half the rise in impairments also emerged in either property or construction loans over the half.Almost all the rise in loans 90 days or more overdue at Westpac emerged through the standardised, or St George, portfolios (up $520 million to $1.2 billion over six months) and once again with this increase concentrated in property and construction loans.