Dallas Fed Senior Vice President Bob Hankins, who oversees bank regulation in the Eleventh District, discusses the district’s banks—from the risks posed by today’s faltering housing markets to lessons from the turbulence of the 1980s.

Banks in the Eleventh Federal Reserve District are performing better than their peers. However, signs of strain are still evident following the recession and financial market crisis. Some banks that restructure troubled loans by granting borrowers easier terms subsequently find the loans...