So, I just had an unnamed signing service contact me for a no notice (meaning the signing needs to be done immediately) signing. The person who needs the documents notarized has them already in their possession and they are in 2 binders. Each complete set needs notarization. I as the notary have to bring 2 witnesses.
The following is the list of documents: a last will and testament, a modification of a revocable trust, a proof of continuous marriage document, a lady bird deed, a quit claim deed, a health care power of attorney, a durable power of attorney, a final disposition of remains form (a document that allows the designee to claim your remains after death), an anatomical donation agreement and a real estate closing packet-seller side. The signing service provided me an address that is a 75-to-85-mile one way trip (depending on route) and it is a 1 hr. 45-minute drive as it is rural roads. Additionally, I have to provide 2 independent witnesses for the will, lady bird deed, trust documents, the powers of attorney forms and the closing.
So, we have 3 hours 15 minutes in drive time. We have a notary and 2 witnesses who must all come in the same vehicle (as per request) and based on my past experiences in doing a signing/notarization of these types of documents, at least 50 notarizations (25 in each binder) and the witnesses will be signing at least 16 times. The signing alone is an almost 2-hour job because they need 2 sets notarized. The only good thing is that I didnāt have to print anything. I do have to drop one set at FedEx after signing. I as the notary have to pay the witnesses.
I quoted a price of $475.00 for what is basically a 7-hour affair with travel and docs drop.
They countered at $150 for myself and the 2 witnesses. 3.5 hours of driving, at least 2 hours of signings and notarizations, a FedEx drop at the center and I am to pay 2 witnesses all out of $150.00
I said no thank you. The signing service said my price was totally "ridiculous and unreasonable "
Yes! Old Republic just sent me its agreement out of the blue claiming Iām certified by the NNA for their offers. They offer only $95!
Here was my response to them:
āWhen I began in 2010 doing signings, we were paid $100-150 depending on experience. (Agencies also lowered payments after the 2008 collapse). Itās been 15 years and thereās been no effort whatsoever to compensate notaries fairly for our work. ORT lowered the fee to $95 thatās just another slap in the face.
The lack of cooperation to provide notary signing agents with provisions for profiting in our businesses couldnāt be more obvious. Itās highway robbery! We pay the NNA yearly fees to renew certification and get background checked. With inflation being high now our overhead for paper, toner, and gas in California isnāt satisfied with $95 payment.
The NNA influenced the mortgage signing agent notaries from getting paid for each notarized signature as it should have been. Itās highway robbery.
I agree with you totally and I did refuse the offer, especially when they came back at me with the statement that my price was ridiculous.
I have been doing this for a fair amount of time, since 2002 in 3 different states, Kentucky and Ohio (I lived on the border so I could gain commissions in both States) and now here in Florida.
It just threw me a bit as I have never had a company say that my request for fair compensation was ridiculous. Usually, I can work with a company and come up with a fair resolution. However, I have never been absolutely called out so aggressively. I just wanted my peers to take a look and honestly give me an opinion as to the amount of work and driving involved, the two witnesses that I would have to pay, and the time commitment, if this was as the service said an unreasonable offer.
You should have heard their subsequent telephone call to me. It was absolutely vile.
Thanks for the response. I do have a schedule of fees and I have it posted to my website, and to all signing services that I currently do business with. So you have that absolutely correct.
Your list of additional considerations (the 5 bullet points) are all very valid and well reasoned.
I posted this not to put this signing service on blast (as I didnāt name them), but hopefully to help notaries that participate in this forum, to raise awareness and to hopefully point out that we as a professional are worth our time and efforts and deserve fair compensation based on the work performed plus our expenses added in.
This one was so far outside of the norm, that I wanted to share the experience. I appreciate you cNsa5.
Old Republic was paying $150 a few years ago. Now theyāre offering $95. I managed to get them up to $115 on a couple of orders, but theyāre following the pattern of lower fees that Iāve seen with other previous ābetter-payingā companies.
@brucem1213 Noticed in a separate post that their demeanor caused their Entry in your Contacts List to switch over to the Do Not Answer [DNA] Category.
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One other item to take under consideration is . . .
The difficulty could simply be the Scheduler & their demeanor.
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I experienced a similar scenario this week with a scheduler for a Low-Ball business entity. Chose to āsleep on itā for determining a decision/action.
The next morning made the determination to Escalate the manner in which the call was managed.
Created a bullet list (within an email) of the queries by the scheduler about my Fee & my responses to those queries
Identified this was the 3rd event (and most aggressive) of this nature while working with that scheduler
Requested they Review their recording of the call (presume they record them)
Sent it
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Within less than one hour I received a Response that identified this incident had been Escalated to Operations & it included the following:
āwe deeply apologize for the behavior, it is completely unacceptable.ā
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@brucem1213Absolutely! Just like ANY other business owner. It has to make business sense to provide the professional services.
Providing these insights & guidelines to assist others to avoid the pitfalls is the principal reason I donate SO MUCH of my time, energy, & efforts to the Notary Cafe forum.
Itās Refreshing to see other Notary Cafe members donate their time as business owners in an effort to assist others . . . whether posing queries or sharing direct experiences or providing Alerts/Cautions.
Unfortunately there are so many Notaries out there that will accept these low offers that it totally undervalues our worth. The reality is, between their time, supplies, etc, their Net is basically āNot worth the troubleā!
That is ludicrous!! The fee theyād given you mustāve been a typo! As I was reading your article, I was pricing it in my head and came up with a minimum of $650! Thatās a lot in one setting!!! Iād probably end up saying no. I wonder if someone took that lowball??! If so, all due to respect, he/she was foolish, and shame on the signing agency!!
NotaryGo constantly sends offers for a refinance for $60. I donāt know who is accepting these offers. The printing alone on these, assuming it is 300 pages (150pages x 2 sets), cost over $40, and the time and mileage isnāt worth a profit of $20. I rarely get offers from anyone for $100 or more so I donāt do many signing anymore.
Thanks for the details! 
Youāre Welcome! 
Thank You! 
*Iām *humbly grateful.
as demonstrated in this similar example