My wife and I live in the same house we bought about six years ago. As first-time home buyers, we had to start an escrow account to help make sure property taxes and insurance are covered. In April of 2021, I noticed that our automatically withdrawn mortgage payment jumped from ~$1,200 to $1,600. I've called the bank that holds our mortgage loan to discuss the increase, but really all they've said is that the increase comes from a hike in property taxes and insurance rate increases, shown below:

The insurance rate has risen from $1,670/yr to $2,173/yr, or a total increase of $41.92/mo.
Property taxes have risen from $1,691/yr to $2,387/yr, or a total increase of $58/mo.

Are there some other charges associated with an escrow account that I don't know of??? I was never real great at math, but the last time I checked, $42+$58 doesn't equal $400. Does anyone know what I might be misunderstanding or missing here?

We're able to make it work financially, but things are getting tighter by the day. I live in a small town in a very modest house - I can't imagine my modular home increased in value so much as to raise the property tax...???

My guess is what you paid into escrow last year was not enough to cover taxes and insurance so they raised it enough to cover what you were short last year and what they think you will owe this year.

Check to see what your property is valued at. They keep increasing mine and subsequently my taxes go up. I am paying 6 times more, literally 6 times more, than I did in 1987 when i bought the place. I protest every time they raise it but it doesnt help much

if the realized the 1199.04 change very late in the year they may be trying to make up for it over 3 months , Oct , Nov Dec

had my first house a year when I quit letting the mortgage company hold my money , they were late paying my insurance and the 11th hour on the taxes and when they do send the taxes they would send a list of names to the clerk with one fat check and she had to figure out who was paying what

this way any extra goes back in one check to the mortgage company

went form a 30 to a 20 that stayed at the credit union , set up to pay the insurance monthly and pulled the money for taxes and put it in a secondary saving account at the credit union.

then the wife and I went and had more kids and needed a bigger house I would have been paid off and mortgage free had we not

How does a person go about that?

My escrow payment has went up every year over the 7 years of my mortgage. I attribute it to the fact that the bank cannot figure what my escrow withdrawls are going to be. Even though with the exception of the year I caught the neighbors house on fire my insurance hasnt went up and neither has my property tax. Yet every year my escrow is short so then I have to make that amount up on the followimg year on top of my normal escrow payment.

After six years, two solutions are possible. You should be able to refinance at a much lower rate. Mine is now 1.875%. You might also be able to stop the escrow and pay your tax and insurance bills annually yourself. Otherwise, you are paying 1/12th of your projected bills each month and they have your money before the bills are due.

Are you kidding?! Mine is 3.9%!

call the county clerk. property tax is a public record

This x2. We get a yearly tax proposal with what our property tax value is.

X2 refinance and shop for other insurance. Your insurance should be sending you notices of increase. County usually sends out notice of valuations. You can probably get property tax info on your counties website.

Mine goes up and down but only about $50+-. Just wait tell you see you're paying late fees because they pairs the property taxes late.

I think Im just going to pay it off. My in-laws are paying the payment. But it I pay it off that will go into my pocket not the bank. In 6 years I will have my money back I paid it off with vs 10 to just to pay off the mortgage.

Don’t know how much crap you want to stir up, but you can pay the property tax under protest and it stops them from using that money until the protest is addressed. More paper work for them and maybe they lower it sum to get you off the books. Guarantee the assessor office does not like it

Do you have a variable rate mortgage, do they even have them anymore?

yes they have them

I am currently on one I did a 10:1 about 13 years ago it was fixed for 10 years then adjusts every year after , I need to get around to refinance but so far my rate has gotten lower than my 10 year fixed

Back up a minute......you caught the neighbor's house on fire? There has to be a good story here.

Did you buy the insurance or did the bank? Make sure you did the shopping for that or you will be paying waaaaay too much.

Dont want to hijack this post so I will PM the story later this evening if I remember. Lets just say though it was just shy of 21k in damage.

If they can't explain it I would consider refinancing somewhere else. Will cost you the fees but that will be made up for in a few months payments difference.

The OP said it was a modular house, correct? Its much harder to finance them compared to a "stick built" house and probably to refi them as well. It might be he can't get much better of a rate.

I'm surprised he hasn't seen an escrow creep until year six, but then again he said he lives in small town of a small population state. My escrow goes up about every year. Then again, I live in a fast growing metro (percentage wise) and housing costs are going nuts!!