Center Valley Escrow

I read the other review that was on Unilocal when my husband and I first started dealing with these people, and I have to admit I was really concerned. I noticed, however, that the review was really old. Being a first time buyer, I didn’t really understand what I was supposed to do. The employees there were really helpful and I got everything pretty quickly. I was surprised how fast we were able to close this escrow deal. Their notary was also EXTREMELY helpful and explained everything when we went into their office to sign all the paperwork. Not only that, but after we finished signing, Ana, the girl we were working with, handed us a bottle of wine! We were so surprised by that– it was like a congrats on our first major step!
So, I’m not sure what was happening with this company 5 years ago, but as far as I’m concerned, they’re a great company to use. The team was helpful and fast with everything.

I wish I could give them zero stars. This is the most incompetent escrow company I’ve ever dealt with. Agents would do their clients a big favor to take them elsewhere. I represented a buyer who was purchasing a bank owned property. The bank chose Center Valley Escrow for reasons I can’t fathom. Besides not knowing what they are doing, they are also overpriced. Here’s what happened:
1. Didn’t know local rules — Escrow procedures are different between Northern and Southern California. This company (located in SoCal) didn’t bother to get familiar with how things are done in the Bay Area before taking on a transaction up here.
2. Accounting mistakes — The mortgage broker and I had to correct their accounting on the transaction 5 times. One of their mistakes would have cost my client $ 3000. They genuinely didn’t know how to read the contract to figure out who pays for what.
3. Non Communication — Getting these guys on the phone is a huge hassle. Don’t even bother with emails, faxes or voice-​mails. These get tossed in the trash. Every scrap of paper I needed from them required me to call 3 times on average to get a person on the phone. I then had to wait on the phone while they did it. If I let them off the line, my file was immediately forgotten until I called again.
In order to get my transaction closed on time, I had to clear my schedule for 4 days so I would have time to nag them. Save yourself and your client a lot of time and grief. Don’t use this company.