How To Double-Close on Sale W/ Escrow Agent Seller Already Knows?

[Burt L.]

I have a property under contract to double-close, and a buyer who has already bought 20 properties from me. The seller didn't want to use my title company and insisted the same title company be used that he bought the property at 7 years ago, although he lives out of state and has never visited the rental property itself.

I did my first double-close at this title company five years ago and called and the same escrow officer and manager are still there and said they would be happy to do it. So I agreed to use the sellers title company. Now I realize the seller is going to insist that the same escrow officer that he bought the property from in 2009, who works in a different office be used and that he knows personally from so much time on the phone together. Apparently, it was under contract with another wholesaler 2 months ago, with this same escrow officer, and it didn't close. It may be that that wholesaler couldn't find a buyer, or the escrow agent disclosed that it was being double closed- I don't know.

I asked the manager I've worked with if he could transfer the file, and he said he spoke with the manager of the other office, who said "he would take care of it". Regardless, I expect the seller to  have a large fit tomorrow and threaten to cancel the deal if his escrow officer isn't used. I only agreed to use his title company and not a specific title officer. His escrow officer has been out of the country on vacation, and then sick, and will be back tomorrow to work, to the countersigned contract that was faxed to her six days ago, with a 14 day close, and now has expired dates on it. The seller has just been letting it sit at her fax machine, waiting for the escrow officer he is comfortable with to return.

The conversation between the manager at that office and the escrow officer will be awkward, I'm sure and she wont be happy, will relay that the file has been taken from her, and he will call me and be very angry, threatening to cancel the deal. I've worked with very few confrontational sellers, but this fellow is different.

I suspect I'm going to end up with his escrow agent, but if that agent discloses that its being double-closed, (BC side funds the AB purchase) the deal may then fall through. It wasn't an easy deal to get under contract in the first place.

Would you have any suggestions on how to work this through? One sure does get comfortable at the title company they are used to working with, confident that the escrow officer wont do or say the wrong thing on double closes.  Conversely, this escrow agent probably wants to get paid this time too. Apologies for the long post.