GLOSSARY

Canadian Financial, Real Estate and Mortgage Glossary

Escrow

Synonyms:	bond, confidence, guarantee, neutral, promise, reliable, third-person
Filed Under:	financial-banking, mortgages, real-estate, taxation
Tags:	banking, mortgage, realty, taxes

escrow: 1. An account in which a neutral third party holds the documents and money in a real-estate transfer until all conditions of a sale are met. Also, an account in which money for property taxes and insurance is held until paid; money is added to the account every time a mortgage payment is made.

conditional sale (C/S) An agreement between the buyer and seller in where certain conditions must be met before the property sale can be finalized.
escrow agent A neutral third party who holds the documents and money in a real-estate transfer until all conditions are met.
trust account An account used by a law firm or real estate agent to handle earnest money, funds set aside for repairs and other money that the buyer and seller put up before closing.