It is absurd to think that a multi-billion dollar bank will agree to lend me a quarter-of-a-million dollars just by signing some ink to a piece of paper to buy the house and wait 30 years to be paid back in full; but an individual seller has to have some of my cash to close the deal. I think that is a tool (trick) thought up by the real estate people to keep me locked into the deal or lose my escrow money. I know the money in escrow is applied towards the purchase price, but that is only if the deal goes through. If the deal falls apart, for >> any << reason, sellers fault, agents fault, my fault, banks fault, etc., I should not be penalized thousands of dollars. There are just way to many homes available for me to be trapped into giving over thousands of dollars in escorw money to simply have the privilege of buying a house.

Buying from owners directly (a FSBO) has not required escrow money.