Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac First Quarter Delinquencires Rise 19%

By Dawn Kopecki June 23 (Bloomberg) -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s “serious” delinquencies rose 19 percent in the first quarter as the government sought to retool its anti-foreclosure programs, a Federal Housing Finance Agency report shows. The number of borrowers at least 60 days behind on mortgages owned or guaranteed by the companies rose to 1.1 million from 926,000 in the fourth quarter, FHFA said in a report on its Web site today. The delinquency rate rose to 3.62 percent, from 3.03 percent the previous quarter. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, seized by FHFA in September because of their losses, have been pushed by the government to help more homeowners modify or refinance their loans to more affordable terms to curb foreclosures. McLean Virginia-based Freddie Mac and Washington-based Fannie Mae own or guarantee $5.3 trillion of the $12 trillion in U.S. residential mortgage debt. The companies modified 37,328 loans in the first quarter, up from about 23,777 in the fourth quarter, the report shows.