Title & escrow, explained for agents
What the title company actually does, what escrow is holding, and where the file can snag. A plain-language tour for agents and the coordinators who support them.
Agents work with title companies on every deal, but the mechanics often stay fuzzy: what is title insurance actually insuring, and why does the same company seem to be holding the money? Understanding the two roles makes you faster at spotting trouble and calmer when a client asks what is taking so long.
Title: proving the seller can sell
A title search examines the public record to confirm the seller actually owns the property and that nothing clouds their right to convey it, unpaid liens, an old mortgage that was never released, an easement, a boundary dispute, an heir who never signed off. The title commitment is the report of what the search found and what must be cleared before closing. Title insurance then protects against problems the search missed.
Escrow: the neutral middle
Escrow is the neutral third party that holds funds and documents until everyone has met their obligations. The earnest money sits in escrow. At closing, the escrow officer collects the buyer's funds and the lender's wire, pays off the seller's existing loan, handles prorations, disburses to the seller, and records the deed. Neutrality is the whole point, neither side has to trust the other, only the escrow holder.
Title answers "can they sell it cleanly?" Escrow answers "did everyone do their part before the money moved?"
Where files snag
- A lien or unreleased mortgage surfaces on the commitment and needs a payoff
- The survey shows an encroachment the buyer or lender objects to
- A name mismatch or an estate in the chain of title needs documentation
- Wiring instructions are targeted by fraud, always verify by known phone number
None of these are unusual, and most resolve with a few days' notice. The coordinator's job is to get the title commitment reviewed early, surface objections before the deadline, and keep the payoff and survey moving so "clearing title" never becomes the thing that delays the close.
You do not need to be a title examiner. You need to know what the commitment is telling you and to treat its objection deadline with the same seriousness as the financing date.