Debt resolution issues

Story Time!
1

Recently I was asked to do a standard debt resolution by a signing company.

I met the client, who was an elderly gentleman. I was asked by the signing company to do a presentation.
**The presentation asked me to tell the client to stop paying his credit cards.

It did not inform him the consequences. He told me he has been paying his cards regularly and wanted to consolidate them into one and not have the hassle of doing 11 + payments. It appeared that he was not in trouble and he told me he had money to pay them. just did not want to do multiple payments

He started asking me question to which i had my own answers, but choose to remain neutral.

I made the client talk to the company that assigned me. The client eventually refused to sign.
Spent 90 plus minutes to get paid $60 as the fee, SO TOTALLY NOT WORTH MY TIME

A person to person meeting for the purpose of counselling and explaining the debt resolution is an absolute requirement in many states.
Debt resolution companies operating out of mostly mid-west states ( Predominantly I have dealt with Iowa, Utah, Colorado, Texas) are using the notary as representative for doing the presentation.

                                        NOTARIES BEWARE !!

A notary must remain a neutral, disinterested party to a transaction for which he is performing an acknowledgement or affidavit. There is a risk, that the signer may end up blaming the notary who did the presentation for influencing his decision

If you accept a commercial debt resolution assignment & conduct presentation and be drawn into explaining it, It can be construed as being a party to a transaction and as such you cannot be a party to a transaction and also a notary.

I am refusing such assignments. Reading and fielding questions and waiting while they get questions answered over phone is too much of an hassle and not worth my time. & the pay is way too cheap at $40 or $50
In my opinion, Big risk must carry big reward. & considering the time spent in travel & doing the presentations.
I am returning assignments and asking for $100 or more.

               Notaries Nation Wide Unite for  FAST PAY !! FAIR PAY
2

In another situation:

I accepted an assignment for commercial debt resolution from a signing service company

Client was given a telephone presentation by the debt company and she was ready to sign .I went to sign and read out the doc. She said she knows it all and spent 30 or more minutes on phone talking to these representatives from the debt company

She initialled and signed all. There was one spot , it said that the notary must put his name and sign and notarize that he was the representative who did the presentation.

I FLAT OUT REFUSED !! Whats even more surprising !! The client gave me name/ number of the person who did the telephone presentation and insisted that I should be putting his name and not mine. Smart client

I did as such and send docs back to the company. Awaiting payment…
Notaries are drawn into shady areas of practices. Stay away from such practices unless you want to risk your license.

In couple other mortgage debt resolutions, the client was instructed by the debt resolution company to directly pay the signing service $160 as notary fee, while the contracted fee for notary was only 40$… What injustice !! However that was illegal as the signing service is not legally allowed to collect notary fee. It must be the notary or the debt resolution company …

For all the above reasons, I no longer want to encourage shady practices.
I am boycotting these type of debt resolutions.

                   NOTARIES UNITED FOR FAST PAY / FAIR PAY
3

I absolutely flat out refuse to do Debt Settlement or Debt Relief. I am not a spokesman for these companies and in some states they are illegal. These debt guys are in my opinion crooks.

2 Likes
4

I agree,Many of them are crooks.

5

I think I know who you are talking about, When it is slow I get tempted to do them but hold back, to much reading, too much time. I had counter offer there fee, they want to pay $60 I always counter offer $75. If not accepted that was fine. I just totally ignore these now. Not worth my time, really!

6

I refuse to do them as well, I do not want to be a Presenter of their Program - dont believe it them

7

I get about 20 offers per month for these debt resolutions. I used to do them one here and there, now I don’t bother. To much reading etc. Takes the same amount of time as a refi for 1/2 to 1/3 of the price.

8

Has anyone had a issue with getting paid from US Signings? I did a signing for them on 3/25/2019 and to date I have not been paid. I called them and got asked to send a e-mail on three separate occasions.Each time I did that and was told it would be tended to right away. The second time I was told by Ed that it would be taken care of and there must be an accounting error then the third time I was told by Ed it was a 45 day net! I am starting believe this is all a bunch if inconsiderate mess since I got a call at 9 PM to do a emergency signing and got kudos from the signers and a special thanks from the company but still not a single payment for the job!

9

Debt signings from across state, non profit entities are at best con jobs, at worst, taking money from people who dont have it.

10

My first statement is, “I assume you have had the program explained in detail by the lender”? If affirmative, I will only read the first paragraph, which states that I am not an attorney and all questions are to be directed here and now to their loan officer.
Then we proceed to the initially process.
Many of the clients are at the end of their financial options and are forced into dealing with the devilish
Programs. Many are hurricane victims in my area.

1 Like
11

Please ask this question to your soul. Would you ask your brother/sister/daughter to go with debt signing services. There is NOTHING NOBLE about this process and earning a few bucks on this ,is a morally questionable task I.M.O.

13

For most of theses folks this is the last straw, the knot in the end of the rope for them. I’m not to judge… I was there years ago… And it sucks.

14 
 Every state has local non profit debt resolution agencies. A simple google search would do.