How Automation Is Streamlining Escrow Payments for Public Agencies

How Automation Is Streamlining Escrow Payments for Public Agencies

BY- Admin

Public entities, from cities to state agencies, are processing financial transactions every day. One of these types of transactions, the escrow payment, not only allows for temporary hold of funds for taxes, permits and completion milestones, etc., but also provides transparency, accountability, and financial responsibility. Escrow payments are necessary to mitigate the conflicting interests of the parties involved, ensure compliance with regulations, and through the complex escrow accounting process, are designed to ensure that all funds are accounted for. As public entities are facing greater expectations for public funds, and our payment processing gets more complex, automation of escrow payments is an innovative option to improve and streamline the financial workflow. In addition, effectively managing the payment process will greatly reduce the future administrative responsibilities of city public processors.

The Challenges of Traditional Escrow Systems

Traditionally, handling escrow accounts past and present has always been both labor-intensive and prone to errors. Many agencies have multiple partners, stringent regulatory requirements, and dismal timelines; these factors can make using manual processes create more opportunities for delay, misdirected funds, and regulatory non-compliance. All of these behaviors create the public trust issues and legal problems that agencies ultimately would like to avoid. 

For instance, while managing property tax payments, funding for infrastructure projects, or other forms of financing, agencies seldom have the ability to track actual events in real-time and may use spreadsheets, emails, and paperwork. Using textiles of these formats requires a lot of work, often presupposes a fair amount of manual reconciliation, and doesn't effectively create a path to audit or scale.


Enter Escrow Payment Automation

  • Escrow payment automation is fundamentally changing how public agencies manage financial security and transparency. In a world with widespread and rapid cloud-based financial management solutions supported by AI technologies, public agencies have the opportunity to automate repositories that require on-going payments, utilizing an automated digital platform to manage compliance and financial security with minimal human intervention.

  • Automated escrow systems, like safedeposit, simplify the entire lifecycle of an escrow transaction, including the initial initiation of an escrow agreement to the funds being released when all compliance requirements have been fulfilled. The platforms are integrated with the banks APIs and the internal systems of the public agency, allowing escrow to be managed seamlessly as part of payments and financial reporting.

  • Here are some of the main benefits of escrow payment automation:

  • Real-time visibility of the balance and transactions on an escrow account.

  • Automated alerts when certain milestones have been achieved and when release conditions have been met

  • Reduced processing times, human error.

  • Better audit trails for accountability and compliance.



The Role of Tax Escrow Systems in Government Agencies

Public agencies, especially at the municipal level, engage heavily in the administration of property taxes, assessments, and contributions from developers, and as such, it is vital to successfully administer that money in order to sustain successful public services and better facilitate infrastructure development.

Tax escrow systems are an efficient process in administering property tax escrows; and, used as a component of a public agency's workflows, help to ensure the property's owner's funds are collected, held, and disbursed in the same manner, every time. This process automation alleviates timing and potential human error associated with traditional processes for collecting taxes or assessments.

A municipality can track tax payments in real-time, 

ensure timely remittances to the appropriate departments, 

reduce the amount of time with no payments/underpayments, 

hold improved communication with owners (than with the tax office). 

Systems like safedeposit will have tax escrow systems with types of dedicated modules to help public agencies manage the increase in transactions securely and responsibly.


How Municipal Escrow Tools Support Infrastructure and Permitting

Another area in which automation is making a big difference is the management of municipal infrastructure projects, and the permitting steps involved in these projects. Whether it is a residential development, or an upgrade to a public works facility, there is hardly any project that does not involve a holding or disbursing activity via escrow, for safeguarding public interest.

Municipal escrow tools automate the collection of funds, and the release of funds from an escrow account, based upon predetermined project milestones, or local compliance measures. Municipal escrow tools provide agencies with a secure automated escrow and centralized resource for reporting large development projects, utility upgrades and controls for environmental compliance.

Some of the benefits of municipal escrow tools include:

Integrated milestone tracking and funds disbursement.

Electronic documentation, and verification for permitting.

Reduced risk of mismanagement or project delays.

Increased accountability and reporting to the public.

Given solutions like safedeposit, agencies can implement scalable municipal escrow tools that directly meet the project management and financial oversight needs of the municipalities.


Case Study: Real-World Impact of Automation

Imagine a mid-sized city has implemented a digital solution from safedeposit to manage its development fees and permit-related escrows.  The city had previously been using paper forms and in-person payments resulting in delays and no clear audit trails. 

The agency limited processing time by 60%, increase transparency with developers, and reduce compliance issues for escrow payments through automation. All this meant were less time spent on admin and more time spent on planning and delivering services to the city!


Why Safedeposit Is Leading the Way

safedeposit is a trusted solutions provider for public agencies looking for modern, reliable, financial management solutions. We have a comprehensive toolset for escrow payment automation, tax escrow systems, and municipal escrow tools that gives public agencies the ability to simplify complex workflows and better serve their communities. 

If you're a city treasurer, finance director or permit office manager, safedeposit has a solution for you!


Final Thoughts

Automation is not a choice for public entities—it’s a must-have. With the increasing volume of transactions, scrutiny through regulation, and demand for transparency, automation of escrow payments gives the greatest competitive advantage. By embracing advanced taxation escrow systems and municipal escrow tools, public entities can be assured of efficiency, compliance, and trust.