Citibank Home Equity Loan Review October 2024

Does Citibank Offer Home Equity Loans or HELOCs?

According to Citibank’s website, they stopped accepting new applications for home equity loans and HELOCs, as of March 3, 2021. The bank attributes this to current market conditions but describes the pause in offering these products as temporary.

In addition to offering business and personal loans, Citibank offers a range of other financial products. These include credit cards, deposit accounts, and investments. This review will focus on products Citibank provides that may represent good alternatives to home equity loans or HELOCs. 

Who is Citibank?

Citibank is one of the oldest and largest banks in the US. It currently has well over 600 physical locations, spread across 14 states. Citibank is temporarily not accepting new applications for home equity loans, but it has other loan offerings. These may be worth considering as alternatives to home equity loans or home equity lines of credit (HELOCs).

Citibank Home Equity Loan Alternatives

Citibank does offer some products which may be useful alternatives to home equity loans or HELOCs:

• A personal loan, which can offer fixed rate and term characteristics similar to a home equity loan
• Cash-out refinancing, which replaces your primary mortgage if you have one
• 0% introductory rate credit cards, which may act as a line-of-credit alternative for some borrowers

Citi personal loans

You can apply for a personal loan at Citi. Here’s what you’ll find:

Loan amount: $2,000 to $30,000 for online applications. Larger loans may be available with in-person applications at Citibank branches.

Interest rate range: Typically between 10% and 24%, but changes depending on market conditions

Loan term lengths: 12, 24, 36, 48, or 60 months

Financial requirements: You’ll need a minimum annual income of $10,500, plus be able to meet other Citibank creditworthiness standards.

Other requirements: Must have had an eligible Citi deposit account open for at least 12 months.

Citi mortgage cash-out refinancing

You can get a cash-out refinance loan at Citi, which will replace your current mortgage if you have one. “Cash-out” means you’ll get enough to pay off the existing loan plus additional cash that you can use for almost any purpose. 

Eligibility is similar to any conventional mortgage. The most creditworthy applicants have a 620 credit score or higher, and a debt-to-income ratio below about 43%. Also, for cash-out, you’ll need to have equity in your home that exceeds any mortgage balance that you owe.

One nice thing about Citi is that if you have at least one account there, you might qualify for closing cost or interest rate discounts on your mortgage loan. 

Loan types: Fixed rate and adjustable-rate mortgages

Loan term lengths: Typically between 10 and 30 years

Citibank HELOC Alternatives

Citibank offers two 0% introductory-rate credit cards for borrowers with good to excellent credit. Here are the details that caught our eye:

Citi Diamond Preferred Card

Introductory APR: 0%

Length of introductory period: 21 months for balance transfers, 12 months for new purchases

Ongoing APR range: Typically between 17% and 28% but changes, depending on market conditions

Annual fee: $0

Balance transfer fee: $5 or 5% of each transfer, whichever is greater

Custom Cash Card

Introductory APR: 0%

Length of introductory period: 15 months for both balance transfers and new purchases

Ongoing APR range: Typically between 16% and 27% but changes, depending on market conditions

Annual fee: $0

Balance transfer fee: $5 or 5% of each transfer, whichever is greater

How to Apply for Citibank Home Equity Loans

Citibank isn’t currently accepting new applications for home equity loans or HELOCs. 

Here’s a look at how to apply for Citi’s alternative products:

Applying for Citibank personal loans

Borrowers can apply for Citibank personal loans online or at a Citibank branch.

Online applications can receive a response within 60 seconds. Once an application is accepted, funds can be received into a Citi deposit account the same day. It can take up to 2 business days for funds to be sent to a non-Citi account. Funding via check takes approximately 5 business days. 

Applying for Citibank refinance loans

Applications for Citibank refinance loans are not offered online. Interested borrowers can make a request online for a call from a Citibank loan officer, or make an appointment to meet with one at a local branch. Cash-out refinance mortgage typically close in 30-45 days, but have been known to close in as little as 10 days when the application is straightforward and well supported with documentation.

Applying for Citibank credit cards

People interested in Citibank credit cards can apply online or by telephone. The application process requires identity and financial information, but not the same documentation required for a mortgage.

Citibank Expert and Consumer Ratings

Citibank wins at customer satisfaction. The bank was ranked 3rd in the 2021 J.D. Power U.S. Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study. 

Mortgage customers on Zillow are overwhelmingly happy with Citi’s home lending department, where Citi has 4.83 out of 5 stars. 

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) gives Citibank a failing grade, and notes that Citibank is not BBB accredited. This rating applies to Citibank overall and is not specific to its lending operations. There is no way to know what’s behind the low rating.

From Bills.com, Citibank home loans earn an average rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars. 

Citibank Pros

With an extensive branch network along with online tools and information, Citibank can cater to people who like to bank in person as well as to those who prefer to work online. 

While Citibank does not currently offer home equity loans, its credit card offerings, cash-out refinance mortgages, and personal loans offer multiple alternatives for borrowers.

Citibank Cons

Citibank’s low rating from the BBB should be worth looking into by potential borrowers. Those borrowers should consider how relevant the reasons for that rating are to their needs.

For people interested in home equity loans or HELOCs, the biggest concern may be the fact that Citibank is temporarily not offering those products.