Would any of you let someone else, a stranger to walk up to you, reach into your wallet take out 30.00 to 40. Dollars as that is the cost you pay for every Signing;
paper, toner, gas, supplies for every Signing you do.
Start subtracting that amount from every offer you get and then see if you want the difference paid to you
Now Signing companies are using snapdocs and have become so lazy they just pass off the work so imagine how much they are getting paid per Signing to afford to pass the work off to SNAPDOCS WHICH IS Very EXPENSIVE. I hate to say it but most of you accepting less than 100.00 to start your car will be out of business very soon. Good Luck but you kind of shot yourself in the foot for accepting low signing fees.
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I don’t think this is necessarily true, especially for those of us who are just getting our foot in the door. I usually get signings for $100, but at first took a few for $75. Then, I started asking a bit more, and I the highest counteroffer I have gotten in $135.
I love Xome and work for them for $90 each signing. However, I am working on staying close to home, and there are a lot of signings up in my remote are so travel is minimal.
Now, I won’t take anything for less than $90.
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You are entitled to your opinion Susan but to say what I & other agents has experienced isn’t true is that what you are really trying to say? We are free to express our selves on the Cafe site. Maybe your still new at the game I don’t know. I mentor many newbies free and teach them first and foremost to not allow any vendor to take advantage or low ball them. Think how much a company signing agent makes for closing in the office she works for. All she does is print the docs on their dime & of the company she works for. No expense
Incurred whatsoever plus gets several hundred dollar bonus for closing the loan.
Now to us, the meat and bones of the industry we print docs at our own office, buy our on machines and supplies. We pay for the light bill the ac/heat bill not to mention the miles we drive. I will tell you Signing agents were paid on average of 250.00 & up a few years back compared to what is paid today & its putting very qualified agents out of work. The only way to stop it is to slow down working for Signing companies and go back to the title and mortgage companies as in the past. I have trimmed the fat from signing companies and work very hard for the wonderful Title and Mortgage companies that are my regulars. This mistreatment has got to stop and I think it will just from the way I’ve seen Signing companies mistreat unsuspecting
New & eager Notaries. We should stand together not tell each other what we are saying isn’t true.
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Charlotte,
Good morning. 
I wonder if you stopped at “this is not necessarily true” and did not read everything I said. It could be my bad that I was not super specific, but I really did think it was clear. I gave you examples as to what I was talking about.
You said:
I hate to say it but most of you accepting less than 100.00 to start your car will be out of business very soon. Good Luck but you kind of shot yourself in the foot for accepting low signing fees.
Again, I don’t think this is necessarily true. New people need to start somewhere while they work their butts off to gain the type of reputation that seasoned notaries have worked their butts off for. It takes work to get your foot in the door and to get on with title companies, which I am working toward. So far I have gotten on with two (one sent me a contract out of the blue, the other I applied), but both still go through the signing service.
Do you think that all new notaries should charge $100 off the bat? Or, should they take a few lower ones (remember, I took $75 for 2 at first, soon began counteroffering with higher rates and got most of them). What do you tell the new notaries you mentor?
This morning, I am doing a job for Xome at $90 for the signing. 126 pages. The caveat is that it’s right around the corner from where I now live. However, any other signing company I ask for $100 or more, unless it’s for a company I actually love working for. I’ll take as low as $95 from them, but I have countered up to $135 for a signing that was about an hour away (Yes, I got it).
You did say most people, which seems to indicate a small gray area of notaries who will not out of business accepting less than $100 per signing. Can you share more about that, please?
Finally, it would have been great to get $250 per signing but the highest offer I have seen is $200 (I could not take it because I was booked); maybe as we all work together we can make that the standard again. However, us newer notaries need to start somewhere and make it our business model to increase fees as we go gain the experience and the reputation with title companies.
Do you see where I am coming from now?
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You say you are “just getting your foot in the door”, however, Xome requires 2 years experience… If you have been working for 2 years then I consider you already having your foot in the door. And it looks like you are getting paid a fair amount for your work.
LOVE LOVE LOVE @susanlittlefield … You hit the nail on the head and it proves the post I wrote about what the SS owner told me. WE HAVE TO HELP EACH OTHER. I don’t see it happening so everyone will just have to keep complaining. I have an entire business structure set, website, social media, all of it. I do 24/7 mobile & CSA. I want to expand it. I’m turning down GNW when I’m doing signings. But I can find NO ONE in my area who wants to partner with me–I don’t need them to bring ANY money in–just be my partner in work, marketing, etc.
Why do you think that is?
IDK but if I was offered an opportunity with someone to jump in on a business that wants to expand to 3 other related areas…I’d be there…but I still see them gobbling up the $65 offers in my area. Lack of confidence? I wish I knew.
I don’t have 2 years experience, I have 2 months. Xome took me on right away and I get plenty of work from them. I, however, had 17 years as a paralegal in construction defect law.
I am close to just hanging it up after doing this for 7 years. What use to be a lucrative business has gone away. You have to fight these greedy signing companies for the pay you deserve and most of the time they will just call another “new” notary who will take these insulting fees. I am in the market for a new line of work…not working for peanuts.
Frustrated in Texas…
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I am a brand new signing agent and am looking for any help with regards to fee structure. Would anyone be willing to share a fee schedule for someone just starting out? I am just looking for averages and what is acceptable in this industry. Sounds like anywhere from $100-150 for a base signing fee, then there is mileage, printing docs, faxbacks, etc. Thanks for any help! This is a totally new field for me, so I am on a steep learning curve. Signed, newbie!
Sorry, I misread that. Experience…that will do it. 
No can do comparing fees, Kim - read up on the Fair Trade Act and restrictions against price fixing. Even the mentions in this post really skirt the law. (I was a real estate broker for 19 years - you learn quickly.) Study your expenses, decide what you want for profit, determine your required revenue and price accordingly. Good luck, and welcome to the business!
Thanks for the info, I just read the Act. Good to know. I do know from the business standpoint how to determine the cost of business, break even, and profit point, I am just unfamiliar with this industry and was seeking input for averages. After reading the act, I will figure my own fees and we will see how well that produces business for me. Thanks!
Reading the forums here and at Notary Rotary will give you some solid starting points. I can say that my basic rule of thumb is that, just as no two signings are the same, no two fees are the same. I ask a lot of questions before I provide a quote, then will adjust as necessary (package larger than expected, more than a certain number of pages to notarize, unexpected additional signer(s), etc) Don’t be shy about asking for an increase if you have a good reason. I hope all is going well for you!
This is excellent advice.
I agree. Fees might be lower for signers who live in your neighborhood and/or town than for those who live further away. On the other hand, even with a smaller package, it might be a higher fee if you travel 40 minutes one way. It really all depends.
I don’t like to talk about pricing much, since it is a touchy issue among notaries. Most notaries have little control over the offers they receive from their customers. There are three markets out there: direct title, signing service and general notary. Some title companies still offer superior fees to their regular notaries. They will be more willing to accept the notary’s fee and adjust to it in order to use a quality notary. The signing service market is tougher to negotiate with. They keep their own fee schedule and expect the notary to adjust to it. They will negotiate if it is last minute or they have no other notary with interest in the job. Other than that, it is usually: we will get back to you. General notary allows you the decision in full as to your fee. If they want you, they pay your fee. If no one offers hundred dollar closings in your area, you are not going to work, no matter what you think you are worth. Know your costs and know how much you need to make a profit, ask for a bit more, but settle for what works.
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I always start with a flat base fee, then add for expenses accordingly. Adjust only after acquiring necessary information when they call. The majority will expect you to accommodate their fees until they hear, “I’m sorry, my fee is… For that location”, while it includes the greatest of your expected expenses. Adjust accordingly after acquiring additional information, only if you feel it would be fair, and reasonable. Fair and reasonable is NOT their sob story about how they only get paid x dollars. It’s a lie… Don’t believe them. Believing them is playing yourself for a fool. Stick to your guns, and your integrity. You are valuable to them, or you should be. We all make mistakes from time to time, and when that happens, you take every step necessary to make it right, at your expense. For those of you who are just beginning, respect yourself, the profession, and your work. Do every job with professionalism. Your job isn’t complete until that loan is seen through to the end. Communication is vital in this occupation. Without it, you fail the borrower. And in the end, it will buy you respect, or cost you your worth. It’s all up to you!
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