what is an escrow agent 
an escrow agent is a person or entity that holds property in trust for third parties while a transaction is finalized or a disagreement is resolved the role of escrow agent is often played by an attorney or notary in civil law jurisdictions the escrow agent has a fiduciary responsibility to both parties of the escrow agreement escrow agent explainedan escrow agent essentially serves as a neutral middleman in the context of an escrow agreement an escrow agreement is a contract between two parties whereby each agrees that a third party should hold an asset on their behalf until their transaction is completed the funds or assets are held by the escrow agent until it receives the appropriate instructions or until predetermined contractual obligations have been fulfilled money securities funds and titles to real estate can all be held in escrow escrow agent vs trusteethere are similarities between the role of a trustee and the role of an escrow agent but there are significant differences as well the two roles are similar in that in each case a third party holds property in trust for someone else and has a fiduciary duty however a trustee has a duty toward the beneficiary or beneficiaries of the trust and must act in their best interest in contrast an escrow agent s duty is toward both parties of a transaction and they are tightly bound by the terms of the escrow agreement escrow agent in real estate transactionsescrow agents are typically associated with selling or buying a home or other real estate in some jurisdictions including the united states they may be referred to as title agents in these cases the escrow agent secures the property and examines documents to make sure the terms of the sale are met on each end thus serving both the buyer and seller in the transaction 