Step 4 - Opening Escrow
April 26, 2007
Your offer to purchase has been successfully negotiated. Both the Buyer and the Seller have agreed on price, terms, closing date and contingencies and their removal. The agents will now open an escrow. An escrow holder is a neutral party who will collect documents and monies and distribute them by following directions in the Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions.
In step 3, I forgot to mention that when you (the Buyer) write the offer, your agent will ask for an "earnest money deposit". This is generally in the form of a personal check made out to your agent's real estate company. It is held uncashed during the negotiations and once agreement between buyer and seller has occured, it is signed over to an escrow holder and deposited into the escrow company account. The amount of the "earnest money deposit" is not determined by law, but most often by practice in the real estate market area in which a home is being purchased. In our Riverside/San Bernardino counties area, it can vary from approximately $1,000 to an amount that is 3% of the purchase price. In the present market, I am seeing $2,000 to $5,000 as the most common initial earnest money deposits. A Seller may ask for an increased deposit when contingencies are removed.
I will discuss escrow processing next week.
Your offer to purchase has been successfully negotiated. Both the Buyer and the Seller have agreed on price, terms, closing date and contingencies and their removal. The agents will now open an escrow. An escrow holder is a neutral party who will collect documents and monies and distribute them by following directions in the Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions.
In step 3, I forgot to mention that when you (the Buyer) write the offer, your agent will ask for an "earnest money deposit". This is generally in the form of a personal check made out to your agent's real estate company. It is held uncashed during the negotiations and once agreement between buyer and seller has occured, it is signed over to an escrow holder and deposited into the escrow company account. The amount of the "earnest money deposit" is not determined by law, but most often by practice in the real estate market area in which a home is being purchased. In our Riverside/San Bernardino counties area, it can vary from approximately $1,000 to an amount that is 3% of the purchase price. In the present market, I am seeing $2,000 to $5,000 as the most common initial earnest money deposits. A Seller may ask for an increased deposit when contingencies are removed.
I will discuss escrow processing next week.
posted by shirley harry at 8:10 AM
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