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Your mortgage servicer (the company that handles your loan) is listed on your monthly mortgage statement.

An account maintained by the lender to collect funds from the mortgagor in order to pay taxes and insurance due on the loan. Items like mortgage insurance and flood insurance may also get paid from the account. It's an easy way to manage property taxes and insurance premiums for your home. You don't have to save for them separately because we collect them as part of your monthly mortgage payment and pay on your behalf when they're due.

Tax and insurance premiums change over time. At least once per year, we will review your escrow to see if any changes have been made. If so, we will adjust your monthly payment accordingly to ensure that your escrow account never drops below a minimum balance. We will send you an escrow analysis statement outlining any changes.

Cutting down the interest rate at the right time allows you to save money and build wealth. A few things can factor into refinancing, like the costs of refinancing and your current financial situation. Oftentimes, after having paid down your loan for a while, you can get better terms because you have demonstrated reliability.

A summary of ownership changes for a specific property. The information contained in property reports is based on what has been recorded and available in public records, regional data, and availability in electronic format and local recordkeeping or disclosure practices.

When a borrower signs a promissory note, he is agreeing to pay the lender a specific amount of money according to certain conditions. In order for the lender to protect his interests, he will require that the borrower sign a mortgage or similar security instrument in favor of the lender. This may be in the form of a mortgage or a deed of trust. Whichever document is used, the purpose of both types of documents is to secure the note and offer protection to the lender.

The basic difference between the mortgage as a security instrument and a Deed of Trust is that in a Deed of Trust there are three parties involved, the borrower, the lender, and a trustee, whereas in a mortgage document there are only two parties involved, the borrower and the lender.

In a Deed of Trust, the borrower conveys title to a trustee who will hold title to the property for the benefit of the lender. The title remains in trust until the loan is paid.

When your lender releases a mortgage, you have paid off the loan balance. A release of a mortgage is the removal of the lender's lien on your home. Local recorders of deeds maintain the real estate records and are the appropriate agencies to file mortgage releases with.

Each year, we review your account to make sure the escrow portion of your total monthly payment covers your property taxes and insurance premiums, while also maintaining the minimum balance your account must have. Changes to your property taxes and insurance premiums may cause your monthly payment to change. We’ll send you an escrow statement after each review (some exceptions apply based on your account status).

If the funds in your escrow account are projected to be below your minimum balance at the lowest point in the 12-month period, you have a shortage. This can happen if the taxes or insurance premiums for the previous 12 months were more than expected. Or, if they're estimated to go up in the next 12 months.

Your escrow shortage will be automatically spread over a term of at least 12 months. Your escrow disclosure statement will provide the details of that shortage and any additional information as necessary.

We’ll send you an escrow statement after each review that details all of this.

Sometimes taxes and insurance are higher than expected. To be prepared, you're required to keep a minimum balance in your account at all times. This helps make sure any unexpected increases are covered. Your minimum balance varies by state but is calculated to not be more than 2 months of escrow payments.

An overage is determined based on a projection of balances over the next 12 months. When comparing the projected monthly balance to the required, if the projected low point is higher than the required cushion, the difference will be refunded to the customer. Any escrow overage of $50.00 or more will be mailed as a check with the Annual Escrow Account Disclosure statement.

If you've set up automatic mortgage payments with:

• Our Recurring payments, we will adjust your payments.
• Our online Bill Pay service, you will need to update the amount.
• A non-Bell Bank bill pay service, you will need to update the amount

The money in your escrow account pays:

• Property taxes
• Homeowners insurance
• Mortgage insurance (if it’s required)
• Flood insurance (if it’s required)

It doesn’t pay:

• Interim tax bills, special or added tax assessments, or any other fees that are not included in your property tax bill
• Homeowners association fees
• Premiums for non-required insurance policies, such as separate personal property insurance
• Supplemental tax bills, except in California

You’ll pay these separately.

Please submit any mortgage related complaints to:

Bell Bank
ATTN: Mortgage Servicing
P.O. Box 11277
Fargo, ND 58106

Borrowers have certain rights under federal law related to resolving errors and requesting information about their mortgage account. Notice of error and requests for information must be directed to:

Bell Bank
ATTN: Mortgage Servicing
P.O. Box 11277
Fargo, ND 58106

Your submission must be in writing and include the name of each borrower, the loan number and a description of the error you believe has occurred OR a request for specific information regarding your mortgage loan.

Most of the time, escrow accounts are required if your down payment was less than 20%. There are benefits to having an escrow account, even if it isn’t required. It helps you manage large expenses like property taxes and insurance premiums so you don’t have to save for them separately. You make 1 combined mortgage and escrow payment each month and we deposit a portion into your escrow account. When your property tax and insurance bills are due, we pay them on your behalf.