Getting a bank loan isn’t easy for many businesses. But here’s help.

The Business Journal set out to determine which local banks are lending to businesses and which are more hesitant. What follows is a guide of sorts for business operators looking for a loan.

Using a combination of publicly available data and self-reported information from many institutions, the Business Journal examined lending trends at the 50 largest banks and thrifts in Los Angeles County. (These banks hold more than 96 percent of all deposits in the county.)

This guide is designed so you can compare each bank’s lending record for the kind of loan you are seeking.

The banks are arranged alphabetically. Each profile lists the size and the percentage change for the year ended Sept. 30 for the following portfolios:

Commercial loans: All commercial and industrial loans to U.S. borrowers. The portfolio for small-business commercial loans is a subset and is broken down into categories; the portfolio of larger loans is not broken down because that data is not available.

Construction loans: Construction and land development loans, excluding single-family homes.

Commercial real estate loans: All loans secured by nonfarm, nonresidential real estate. For banks, the category is split into owner-occupied and non-owner-occupied real estate; for the six thrifts on the list, the category is not split this way. The commercial real estate loan portfolio for small businesses includes both owner occupied and non-owner occupied.

In The Lowdown section, this guide also explores lending specialties, typical loan sizes and significant recent developments, when possible.

The data may not tell the whole story. Overall, though, the numbers can give a sense of which institutions are growing their loan portfolios and which aren’t.