N.Y. General Obligations Law § 5-601: Interest on deposits in escrow with mortgage investing institutions

§ 5-601. Interest on deposits in escrow with mortgage investing

institutions. Any mortgage investing institution which maintains an

escrow account pursuant to any agreement executed in connection with a

mortgage on any one to six family residence occupied by the owner or on

any property owned by a cooperative apartment corporation, as defined in

subdivision twelve of section three hundred sixty of the tax law, (as

such subdivision was in effect on December thirtieth, nineteen hundred

sixty), and located in this state shall, for each quarterly period in

which such escrow account is established, credit the same with dividends

or interest at a rate of not less than two per centum per year based on

the average of the sums so paid for the average length of time on

deposit or a rate prescribed by the superintendent of financial services

pursuant to section fourteen-b of the banking law and pursuant to the

terms and conditions set forth in that section whichever is higher. The

superintendent of financial services shall prescribe by regulation the

method or basis of computing any minimum rate of interest required by

this section and any such minimum rate shall be a net rate over and

above any service charge that may be imposed by any mortgage lending

institution for maintaining an escrow account. No mortgage investing

institution shall impose a service charge in connection with the

maintenance of an escrow account unless provision therefor was expressly

made in a loan contract executed prior to the effective date of this

section.