Escrow Analysis Setup Screen

Click the Escrow Analysis Setup button on the Escrow Analysis screen to open the Escrow Analysis Setup window. The window opens with the Initialize tab at the front.

Initialize tab

Use this tab to select the homeowners to be initialized.

Field Name

Type

Description

Homeowners

Drop-down

All homeowners or a just a specific set of homeowners can be selected for initialization.

You can use the Select Homeowners Including field on the Escrow Analysis screen to restrict this list as needed to show only homeowners with obligations to a particular recurring escrow payee.

Initialize Escrow Data button - Once you have set all the Annual Options and Long Term Options and selected the homeowner you want to initialize, click the Initialize Escrow Data button. This resets the selected homeowner values in the escrow data table and loads it with the values you just defined for the new analysis. These values will remain active until you initialize these homeowner’s escrow data again.

The initialization process may take several minutes. When this has been completed, close this screen to return to the Escrow Analysis screen.

Annual Options tab

Use this tab to enter the start date of the escrow analysis and to make any projections for changes to amounts owed to the listed escrow payees for the next year. For example, you can adjust for a 7% increase in city taxes across the board here by entering 7% in the % Adj. field.

Field Name	Type	Description
Effective Date	Entry	The effective date for the escrow analysis. All balances and calculations are computed using this date as the point of reference. Set this so that it will be the date of the homeowners’ first new payment that results from the escrow analysis.
Escrow Payee	Read-only	This column contains all of the escrow recurrent payees entered in Keystone.
Category	Read-only	The categories in this column correspond with the escrow payees to their left.
% Adj	Entry	If the payments to any of the escrow payees are expected to change during the payment period you are analyzing, you need to make sure that any adjustments you make here plus any cushion adjustment you make do not exceed the total allowable cushion.

Long Term Options tab

The Long Term Options tab includes several options that probably will not change from year to year.

Field Name	Type	Description
% of Allowable Cushion	Entry	RESPA allows a lender to hold a two-month cushion of the homeowner’s monthly payment to pay for any unforeseeable changes in liability. The % of Allowable Cushion field allows you to define how much of this two-month cushion your affiliate would like to use (between 0% and 100%) for the analysis.
% Escrow Adjustment Limit	Entry	The most a homeowner's escrow payment can be adjusted in a given year, expressed as a percent. This percentage is used to compute allowable adjustments on the Escrow Analysis screen. Monthly payment adjustments that exceed a certain amount may be too high for homeowners to manage. The % Escrow Adjustment Limit field allows you to specify what this limit should be for your affiliate’s homeowners. The default is set to 20%. When an adjustment exceeds the limit, the homeowner is given additional options. Refer to the Escrow Management Guidelines for the logic used by Keystone Escrow Analysis to determine the options and letter to be communicated to the homeowner.
Adjust Escrow Payment to result in even total Payment dollars	Check box	Check to round the total payment to the nearest dollar.
Principal has shortage and escrow has surplus. Apply surplus to shortage and if balance is less than $50	Radio button	If this condition (as defined in RESPA guidelines described in the Escrow Management Guidelines section) exists for a homeowner, choose an option based on your affiliate's policy. According to federal guidelines, you can either use the escrow surplus to reduce the principal shortfall or refund the balance to the homeowner directly.
Principal is current and escrow has surplus that is less than $50	Radio button	If this condition (as defined in RESPA guidelines described in the Escrow Management Guidelines section) exists for a homeowner, choose an option based on your affiliate's policy. According to federal guidelines, you can either use the escrow surplus to reduce the homeowner's monthly payment or refund the balance to the homeowner directly.

Buttons

Close - Closes the Escrow Analysis Setup screen.