Citi Reports Run Up in Mortgage Defaults and Credit Losses

Citigroup reported $1.9 billion in net credit losses on its residential mortgage portfolio in the first quarter, up from $887 million a year ago, due to a "continued rise" in delinquencies, the company said. The New York-based banking giant said the percentage of first mortgages 90 days or more past due jumped to 7.15%, up from 3% in first quarter of 2008. The single-family loans that Citi owns with FICO scores below 620 have a 13.7% serious delinquency rate. Meanwhile, Citigroup has a 3.25% serious delinquency rate on its home equity loans as of March 31, up from 1.45% a year ago. Citigroup said it originated $22.4 billion in residential mortgages in the first quarter, up from $16.6 billion in the previous quarter, but down 40% from the first quarter of 2008. Overall, Citigroup's North American consumer and mortgage banking units reported a $178 million loss for the first quarter. The company does not break out losses due to its residential mortgage business.