Quick answer
Your servicer collects a twelfth of the year’s property tax and insurance with each payment, and may keep a cushion of no more than 2 months of deposits. Once a year it re-projects the account: if taxes rose, you face a shortage, usually spread over at least 12 months. In our example a 15% tax increase on a $300,000 home lifts the payment by $58 a month for a year, then settles $33 above where it started. A surplus of $50 or more must be refunded within 30 days.
Key facts
Escrow, month by month
The short definition is in the escrow account glossary entry. What matters for your budget is the rhythm: money goes in every month, but comes out in a few large bills.
Take a $300,000 home with 20% down. At the national 0.89% tax ratio the yearly tax is $2,670, and insurance at $4.90 per $1,000 of value is $1,470. In this example the tax is billed in two halves, in months 5 and 11, and insurance renews in month 8. The servicer collects $345 a month and sets the opening balance at $1,035 so the account never dips below its cushion:
| Month | Deposit | Paid out | Balance after the month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | $345 | — | $1,380 |
| Month 2 | $345 | — | $1,725 |
| Month 3 | $345 | — | $2,070 |
| Month 4 | $345 | — | $2,415 |
| Month 5 | $345 | $1,335 — Property tax, first half | $1,425 |
| Month 6 | $345 | — | $1,770 |
| Month 7 | $345 | — | $2,115 |
| Month 8 | $345 | $1,470 — Homeowners insurance | $990 |
| Month 9 | $345 | — | $1,335 |
| Month 10 | $345 | — | $1,680 |
| Month 11 | $345 | $1,335 — Property tax, second half | $690 |
| Month 12 | $345 | — | $1,035 |
The lowest balance, in month 11, is $690 — exactly the cushion. The balance ends the year where it started, which is what a correctly projected account does.
The cushion: why the low point isn’t zero
Regulation X lets the servicer keep a cushion of up to one-sixth of the year’s escrow bills — 2 months of deposits, or $690 here — so a slightly higher bill doesn’t push the account negative. The limit applies to the lowest projected balance, not to the balance on any given day, which is why the account above holds far more than $690 just before each tax bill. State law or your mortgage documents can set a lower cushion, never a higher one.
At closing, the initial escrow deposit on your Closing Disclosure is the amount needed to reach that projected path given when your first bills fall due. You receive an initial escrow statement at closing or within 45 days, and the servicer must pay bills on time from the account as long as your payments arrive within 30 days of the due date — even if that means advancing its own money.
The annual escrow analysis
Once a year the servicer runs the projection again with the latest tax and insurance bills, compares the result with what is actually in the account, and sends you an annual statement within 30 days of the end of the escrow year. The statement shows last year’s deposits and payments, next year’s projected bills, the new monthly deposit and any shortage or surplus.
Compare the bills with your own records
Look up your tax bill on the county site and your insurance renewal; make sure the amounts and due dates match.
Check any exemption
If you filed for a homestead or other exemption, confirm the projection uses the reduced bill.
Find the lowest projected balance
It should not exceed the cushion of 2 months of deposits.
Read the shortage or surplus line
Note the repayment option and whether a lump-sum payment is offered.
Call the servicer about errors
A wrong tax figure or a missed exemption can be corrected before the new payment starts.
Shortage, deficiency or surplus
The analysis can end three ways, and Regulation X treats each one differently:
| Result | What it means | What the servicer may do |
|---|---|---|
| Shortage | The balance is below the target the projection needs | Small (under one month’s deposit): leave it, ask for it within 30 days, or spread it over 12 months or more. One month’s deposit or more: leave it or spread it over at least 12 months |
| Deficiency | The account is actually negative — the servicer advanced money | Small: leave it, ask for it within 30 days, or collect it in two or more monthly payments. One month’s deposit or more: leave it or collect it in at least 2 equal monthly payments |
| Surplus | The balance is above the target | $50 or more: refund within 30 days if you are current. Less: refund it or credit next year |
A shortage is a projection problem — there is still money in the account, just not enough for next year. A deficiency means the account went below zero and the servicer covered a bill. Both usually trace back to a bill that rose faster than the estimate, often the first tax bill after a sale or a reassessment.
Worked example: a tax increase creates a shortage
Now say the county reassesses the home and the yearly tax rises 15%, from $2,670 to $3,070. The second-half bill in month 11 arrives at the new level, so the account pays out $200 more than it collected and ends the year at $835. Next year’s projection needs a bigger deposit and a bigger cushion, and an opening balance of $1,135.
15% tax increase on a $300,000 home, $240,000 loan at 7.24%
| Before | Next 12 months | After the shortage is repaid | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly property tax | $2,670 | $3,070 | $3,070 |
| Monthly escrow deposit | $345 | $378 | $378 |
| Shortage repayment ($300 over 12 months) | — | $25 | — |
| Principal and interest | $1,636 | $1,636 | $1,636 |
| Total monthly payment | $1,981 | $2,039 | $2,014 |
The shortage of $300 is the money paid out but not collected plus the larger cushion. That is less than one month’s escrow deposit, so the servicer may leave it in place, ask for it within 30 days, or spread it over at least 12 months. If you pay it in one lump sum, your payment goes straight to $2,014. The property tax article shows why bills jump after a purchase and how to check them before you buy.
When the account has too much: surplus refunds
The same arithmetic works in reverse. Suppose instead that a homestead exemption cuts the tax by 10% from the second-half bill onward. The account ends the year with more than next year’s projection needs — a surplus of $200. Because it is at least $50 and you are current, the servicer must send it to you within 30 days of the analysis. Your deposit also falls, to $323 a month.
You count as current if the servicer receives each payment within 30 days of its due date. If you are behind, the servicer may keep the surplus in the account under your loan documents.
Can you skip escrow?
Many lenders require escrow, and federal rules require it on a higher-priced mortgage loan — one whose APR is 1.5% or more above the average prime offer rate (measured in percentage points) on a conforming-size first mortgage. On those loans you can’t ask to cancel the account until at least 5 years after closing, and only if the balance is below 80% of the original value and you aren’t behind.
Where your lender allows a waiver, ask whether it changes the price of the loan. Then you are the one who saves $345 a month and pays $1,335 tax bills twice a year and a $1,470 insurance renewal on time; a missed premium can lead to force-placed coverage, as the homeowners insurance article explains. Our mortgage payment calculator shows the full payment with and without the escrow items.
Frequently asked questions
Why did my escrow payment go up?
Usually because your property tax or insurance bill rose. The annual analysis raises the monthly deposit for the higher bills and, if the account paid more than it collected, adds a shortage repayment — in our example $58 a month for a year after a 15% tax increase.
How much can my lender keep in escrow?
The cushion — the lowest balance the projection allows — can be no more than one-sixth of the year’s escrow bills, or 2 months of deposits. On our example $300,000 home that is $690. State law or your loan documents can set a lower limit.
Can I pay an escrow shortage in a lump sum?
Usually yes — servicers generally offer it on the annual statement. Paying it removes the repayment from your monthly payment, so only the higher deposit remains.
What is the difference between an escrow shortage and a deficiency?
A shortage means the balance is below what next year’s projection needs but still positive. A deficiency means the account went negative and the servicer advanced money. Larger deficiencies must be collected in at least 2 equal monthly payments if the servicer collects them.
When will I get my escrow surplus refund?
If the surplus is $50 or more and your payments are current, within 30 days of the escrow analysis. Smaller surpluses can be refunded or credited against next year’s deposits.
Can I remove escrow from my mortgage?
It depends on your lender and loan. On a higher-priced mortgage loan the required escrow can’t be cancelled until 5 years after closing and only below 80% of the original value. Elsewhere, ask your servicer about its waiver rules.
Sources
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey — 30-year fixed rate, national weekly average (Week of Oct 29, 2026)
- US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year — Effective property tax rate (median taxes ÷ median home value) (2024 ACS 1-year)
- Freddie Mac Research — Average homeowners insurance premium per $1,000 of home value (2023 data)
- CFPB, Regulation X 1024.17 — Most an escrow account may hold as a cushion (one-sixth of annual escrow payments); Escrow surplus at or above this amount must be refunded to a current borrower; Escrow shortage of a month’s payment or more: if the servicer collects it, repayment is spread over at least (Oct 28, 2026)
- 12 CFR 1026.35(a) (Regulation Z) — Higher-priced mortgage loan: APR at least this many percentage points above the average prime offer rate (first lien, conforming size); Higher-priced mortgage loan: required escrow account can’t be cancelled until at least this long after closing; Higher-priced mortgage loan: escrow cancellation also needs the balance below this share of the original value (Oct 29, 2026)
- CFPB: What is an escrow or impound account?
Last reviewed Figures are checked against the sources above. Read our editorial policy. This page is general information, not financial advice — see the disclaimer.