Why did I get a check back from my Escrow account?
I had one of my buyers that bought a house from me last year, give me a call. He asked me why he got a check back from his Escrow account. Wondering what he should do with this check that he just received from his escrow account. First of all, I asked him how much it was and he told me $3200 Dollars. I am sure he was thrilled when he opened up the envelope, and was very close to taking his family to Disney world.
However, I thought back to last year and remembered that he bought his house from an elderly couple.
What had happened was his lender escrowed the amount of money that he would need for taxes as a young family that has a homestead exemption. The seller of the house was moving into a retirement community and didn’t need to carry the exemption with him. So at the end of the year the taxes that were due was extremely low because the young family was able to take the advantage of the over 65 exemption for the rest of the year on the previous sellers coattails.
The Right thing to do in this case.
You should put the money into your account and when you make your next payment, send that same amount in with your payment.
But make sure you mark on your statement that it is for extra escrow. Because if you don’t they will just use it as an extra house payment instead of putting it back into your escrow account. It is also not a bad idea to give your lender a call about a week after you mail the money back.
If you don’t send the money back the following year your house payment will Skyrocket to try and make up for the shortage.
Why did I get a check back from my Escrow account? In a smaller amount.
Now if you receive a check back from your escrow in a smaller amount , less than $500, usually that means that they have collected too much to begin with ,or you changed insurance company with a lower premium , or your property taxes have gone down some. In this case it is usually safe to say go ahead and spend the money.
Just stop and think before you spend it because it may cause you more headaches in the long run.
Related Resourses:
What Tax exemptions are available for your primary residence in Texas?
Angie Murphy/Realtor
Coldwell Banker Residential
4500 Hartwood Drive, Fort Worth, Tx .76109
817-825-4786
Comments(1)