Understanding Escrow & Escrow Analysis

 

What Is Escrow?

When you have a mortgage, Vantage West Credit Union will set up an escrow account to help you pay for:

  • Property taxes
  • Homeowners insurance

Instead of paying these bills directly, you pay a portion of them each month along with your mortgage payment. Vantage West holds that money in escrow and pays the bills when they’re due.

What Is Escrow Analysis?

Escrow analysis is a review Vantage West performs—usually once a year—to ensure:

  1. You’re paying enough into escrow to cover your taxes and insurance.
  2. You’re not overpaying or underpaying.

How It Works (Step-by-Step)

  1. Estimate Future Costs
    Vantage West estimates how much your property taxes and insurance will cost over the next 12 months.
  2. Divide by 12
    We divide that total by 12 to determine your monthly escrow contribution.
  3. Check the Account Balance
    We review your current escrow balance to see if you have:

    • Too little (a shortage)
    • Too much (a surplus)
  4. Adjust Your Payment
    If needed, your monthly mortgage payment is adjusted to account for any shortage or surplus.

Escrow Analysis Delivery

  • Escrow Analysis statements are mailed out in the second week of November.
  • A cover letter is included to help you understand the process:
    • Page 1: Reflects what happened during the current calendar year.
    • Page 2: Projects what will happen in the upcoming calendar year.
    • Page 3: Summarizes all information and shows your new monthly payment.

Surplus Information

  • If you are due a surplus of $50 or more, it will be deposited into your Vantage West savings (00) account.
  • The deposit will be labeled “Escrow Refund.”
  • This is your money—you can use it however you wish.
  • You’ll receive notice via email and mail to the addresses we have on file, so make sure your account information is up to date

Shortage & Deficiency Guidelines

  • You must pay the full shortage and deficiency amount listed to recalculate your monthly payment.
  • No additional funds beyond the listed amount can be accepted.
  • You cannot pay extra to keep your payment the same due to legal limits on escrow balances.
  • If you choose to pay the shortage/deficiency:
    • It must be paid in full before January 1st.
    • Payments made after this date will not trigger a recalculation.
    • Paying the shortage/deficiency does not guarantee your payment will stay the same—it may still increase, just not as much.

Estimating Your New Payment

  • Review Page 3 of your escrow analysis.
  • In the top right corner, subtract the monthly shortage and/or deficiency amount listed to estimate your new payment.

Member Support

If you’re concerned about affording the new payment, contact our Collections department at [email protected] or 520-917-6246.

Automatic Payments

  • If your payment is set up on ACH/Auto Pay through VWCU (not home banking), it will automatically adjust with your first scheduled due date.
  • If your automatic payments are set up elsewhere, you must update your scheduled payment amount before your next due date.