When your rate hasn't changed but your monthly payment has, escrow is almost always the reason.

An escrow account collects property taxes and homeowners insurance ahead of time and pays them when due. What's collected each month is one twelfth of a projection — so when the actual bills differ from that projection, a gap appears.

That gap is reconciled once a year through an escrow analysis, which you receive as a written statement. If actual costs exceeded the projection, the account runs short, and your new monthly figure covers both the shortage and the higher projection for the year ahead. If there's a surplus instead, you receive a refund or a lower monthly amount.

Property taxes usually rise because of a county reassessment. Insurance rises at renewal. Homeowners insurance premiums have climbed sharply in recent years, so that's frequently the driver.

Where homeowners lose money is by reading the notice and moving on. Insurance can often be re-quoted. Property tax reassessments can be appealed, but only within a set window. And if PMI is still on your loan, removing it lowers the total payment. We'll read the escrow notice with you and identify what's actually adjustable right now.