Wow, no one even asked what the sales price was! If I assume the purchase price is #250,000, then there is going to be a "minimal fee" which may add up to 4%. Although this is VERY rare, 4% is criminal and judging by the date of this thread, they may actually be in court for fraud at this point. 1.25% of the purchase price includes lenders fees (not points paid), title and escrow for the buyer. So if at $500,000, that's $6250 in closing costs, usually broken out to $1500 lenders fees, $1500 for title (includes fedex, notary), leaving about $3250, which about $1000 will be for notary, interest due (no escrows here), so about $2250 for escrow. All the people on this thread never answered your question or asked the right question - all just trying to sell their services. The above is pretty spot on, but EVERY escrow is different and San Diego escrow companies are a PAIN and primadonnas, so stay on them BIG time. I'm spoiled here in L.A.

2% is high. Usually around $1,000 to $1,500.

2% sounds high. I feel it's the buyer who should choose the escrow and title companies.

Hi Joe,
Yes 2% sounds high. typically all of your closing costs (escrow, title, mortgage etc...) run about 3% of your sales price. Most companies are usually competitive with each other. They have a base fee then charge so much per thousand. Sometimes they can add a lot of small junk fees which can add up. If you have not closed yet, I would try and negotiate with the escrow company on their fees. They are not in control of what the title or lender charges. Also included a link to an escrow I have used for 20 years. Good luck.

Concur that you should give Fred Eckert a call.

Ask this escrow company to provide with a copy of their published rates. They are required to have these in printed format on file at all times. I don't have my formula onhand to share with you to give you an idea of the general escrow fee paid but the last escrow I just closed was for a home sale price of $400,000 and the escrow fee portion of the closing costs was $999.00. Now understand that there are also title insurance fees, notary fees, sub-escrow fees, loan tie-in fees, etc. These fees are usually outlined in your lender's good faith estimate as they manage many of the closing costs for a buyer. Compare the lender's good faith estimate to a copy of the escrow company's estimated closing statement to see what the differences may be. It is always prudent to review your closing statement before closing. Your real estate agent should help you determine if something looks out of range. Best of luck!!

Hi Joe. While I don't know what your purchase price is, 2% closing cost sounds high. Since your profile says that you are a buyer, I am wondering why it matters which escrow company the listing company chooses. Is the listing company also representing you? I just want to make sure you understand that you as the buyer get to choose the title company and it's not up to your agent or the seller's agent to make that choice for you. Sometimes they may recommend a particular company, but in the end it's still your choice. Since I don't know how far into the escrow you are already, I don't know if switching to a different escrow/title company would be suitable. If switching at this juncture is not feasible, try to negotiate some of the closing costs down. They can't really negotiate the cost of title insurance because those are published rates, but the escrow fees are negotiable. Good luck.

Joe,
With our company, Chicago Title, escrow fees are based on the sales price of the home. Let me know what the price is and I will get you our quote. As an example, for a $500,000 sale, our escrow fee would be $2300 total (this is customarily split between buyer and seller). The title policy for a $500,000 loan, for the buyer is $635. Hope that helps. I am including a link below that shows who pays for what. Please wait for it to load. You can call me if you have questions.

Hi there Joe, this seems high, What is the purchase price ? It normally is $ 2 per thousand with a $ 200 base. So for Example Sales price $ 600,000 Escrow would be $ 1,400 per side. Total closing costs normally is 1.5% of Purchase price.
If you are interested in getting more informtion on this let me know. Hope this helps
Kind Regards
Michael Barron
Realtor
First Team Real Estate