The close of escrow technically signifies the moment at which the associated documents are recorded, but the terms is also used to refer to the procedures that are performed in the escrow office in relation to that event. This includes the completion of final settlement calculations and the distribution of payments called for in the escrow instructions – loan payoffs, broker commissions, insurance premiums, and the like. This process is also loosely referred to as the ‘closing’; however, it is important to distinguish the closing of the (sale) escrow and the closing of the loan, which is the term lenders use for the moment when a borrower executes their final loan documents (and this may variously be referred to as the ‘closing’ or the ‘consummation’ of the financing).
