Making Escrow Less of a Stressful Experience

An article in the week.com highlights how the escrow period can be stressful when an offer has been accepted but the moment of moving in is still a long way off. However, the article outlines several ways to make this time less stressful.

Firstly, it suggests trusting your real estate agent because they can offer valuable advice and explanations during this period of negotiations. Knowing you can trust them to look after you can bring peace of mind and the article suggests just checking in once a week to make sure everything is running smoothly. It also points out the need to stay flexible as part of the escrow process is asking for repairs or credits while keeping an eye on the bigger picture. In the grand scheme of things, a few thousand dollars isn’t going to matter that much. When entering into escrow it’s important to ask your realtor to give you a rough timeline, just so you know when various milestones have been met and you can check the progress.

One thing that is within your control during escrow is paperwork and the article does stress the need to sign any paperwork immediately to avoid any delays in escrow. Apparently, a buyers response can often slow down escrow and even though it may not seem as if very much is happening, the lender in the escrow company is likely to be working hard to make sure the sale closes on time. Working with an experienced lender can help make the process less stressful as they are likely to chase buyers for bank statements, paperwork and income tax information.

Another thing buyers can do is to create a to-do list such as scheduling inspections, shopping for insurance companies, arranging for utilities to be switched over and getting the locks changed. Experienced buyers will already know there’s no such thing as a perfect house which is why the article suggests scheduling all inspections into just one day and to be there in person during the inspections. This is because written reports can be daunting and inspectors can often explain things more clearly than in a written report. By being present, you can get more information about your new home.