Legally close escrow when you are away

By Justin Hunter

All the legal forms and documents you have to read and sign during the home purchase or selling process can be very taxing. You often have to leave work early or go to work late in order to meet with brokers and agents. If you are out of town for a day or two, the process can wait, but what happens if you are gone longer than that and you have to sign closing documents on the property or escrow? An extended wait can ultimately disrupt the transaction.

Sandy Gadow’s straight-forward article, “Closing Escrow When You Are Out of Town,” posted on reiclub.com, provides a few options to ensure you close on your escrow while you are away.

There are many things that require a lot of time during a real estate transaction. You cannot be expected to not go anywhere for months at a time while everything get settled.

“It may happen that you or your spouse must be out of town at the time of your escrow closing. Perhaps you suddenly have to go out of the country and you may be worried how you are going to close your escrow on time when you can't physically be present for the closing. There are several solutions to this problem.”

The most common and widely used way of closing escrow while you are out of town is through the Power of Attorney form. This form allows you to gives the power of your signature to someone else.

“You may sign a Limited Power of Attorney, which would pertain to a certain transaction, so you do not have to fear that someone could sign you life away. The Power of Attorney form may also be General, covering a broad range of topics. The Power of Attorney form should be recorded at the County Recorder's office.”

When you return from out of town, your relinquished power will be cancelled at the recorder’s office.

Another viable alternative to signing escrow when you are not present is to use a signature via Fax. Some escrow and title companies permit escrow instructions with fax copies of signatures, with the expectations that the original signed copies will be supplied a few days later.

“The escrow holder allowing a faxed signature will include a statement which will state that ‘in the event the buyer, seller, agent and/or assigns utilize facsimile instructions, the escrow holder is instructed to rely and act upon such instructions. The Escrow holder will take no responsibility or liability for any party who relies upon facsimile instructions which were erroneously transmitted to the escrow holder.’”

Many escrow companies do not like to rely on signatures via fax due to the presented opportunity of forgery. The escrow companies may use the fax system to gather required information, but prefer to close escrow with live signatures or with a Power of Attorney authorization.

Along the same lines as a faxed signature is the emerging presence of e-signatures, which are transmitted via the Internet. E-signatures require a password to log onto the personal pages of information, but also make escrow companies leery.

Obtaining an individual’s password would be rare but not difficult.
If you absolutely cannot be present during escrow closing, the best way to accomplish the task is through Power of Attorney.

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