escrow

/es'krou/

Thân thiện

The buyer deposits the funds into escrow until the sale is complete.

Definition

Noun: 1. A legal arrangement: A financial or contractual instrument (such as money, a document, or property) that is temporarily held by a neutral third party (the escrow agent) on behalf of two other parties involved in a transaction. The third party releases the escrowed item only after specific, pre-agreed conditions are met by one or both parties.

Usage

The term "escrow" is primarily used in legal, financial, and real estate contexts to describe a secure holding mechanism that protects all parties in a transaction by ensuring obligations are fulfilled before assets change hands. It functions as a noun, often used with prepositions like "in," "held in," or "released from."

Examples

• The buyer deposited the funds in escrow until the home inspection was completed.
• The software company placed its source code in escrow to assure clients it would be available if the company went out of business.
• The contract stipulates that the payment will be held in escrow by the lawyer until all deliverables are accepted.
• Once the conditions were satisfied, the deed was released from escrow.

Advanced Usage

• To escrow (verb, less common): The act of placing something into an escrow arrangement.
  • The parties agreed to escrow the disputed funds until the court reached a decision.
• Escrow account: A specific bank account held by the escrow agent where funds are deposited.
  • Your monthly mortgage payment includes money for property taxes, which the lender places in an escrow account.

Variants and Related Words

• Escrow agent / Escrow holder: The neutral third party (often a bank, title company, or attorney) responsible for safeguarding and distributing the escrowed assets according to the agreement.
• In escrow: The state of an asset being held under an escrow arrangement. This is the most common collocation.

Synonyms

• Trust: (in a legal/financial sense) A similar arrangement where assets are held by one party for the benefit of another.
• Security deposit: A specific type of escrow, often for ensuring no damage is done to a rented property.
• Bond: A sum of money held as a guarantee, though typically for performance or compliance rather than transactional conditions.

Related Phrases

• Close escrow: (Primarily in real estate) To complete the transaction, finalize all conditions, and release the funds and property title from the escrow arrangement.
  • We are scheduled to close escrow on the new house next Friday.
• Fall out of escrow: When a transaction fails because conditions are not met, and the escrowed assets are returned to their original owner.
  • The deal fell out of escrow when the buyer could not secure financing.

Học thuật

Noun

1. a written agreement (or property or money) delivered to a third party or put in trust by one party to a contract to be returned after fulfillment of some condition