I wanted to get some feedback from other notaries on a recent situation and how you would have handled it.
I was contacted for a signing, and the title company later reached out to me directly. They mentioned that the first notary had billed $225, while my fee through the signing service was $150. They expressed concern about the inconsistency and told me to reach out to the signing service to request alignment with the $225.
I did so professionally, and the signing service responded that $225 was the total fee for the order and that I would only receive a portion of that amount. Their response was a bit blunt, but not entirely surprising.
I then updated the title company (since they initially raised the concern), and they went back to the signing service. In the end, they ensured I was paid the higher amount.
My questions for you all:
• Would you have contacted the title company directly, or left it with the signing service?
• Do you typically push for fee alignment when you know another notary was paid more for the same assignment?
• How do you handle situations where title companies become aware of signing service markups?
• Have you been able to convert situations like this into direct work with the title company?
For me, this highlighted the importance of professionalism, transparency, and knowing when to advocate for your value—but I’d love to hear how others approach it.
Thanks in advance for your insight!
Personally I don’t find the title company’s request very professional. It’s not our job to address an inconsistency in fees for them.
I see this all the time. I’ll take a job at x fee, documents aren’t ready in time I communicate my deadline to the hiring party they cancel the order from me and then offer it out at the original low fee that i countered and received at a higher fee.
Title companies are probably well aware of how things are working between what they pay for a notary fee and what we get paid.
I communicate with all title offices by sending a fees page. But am almost always hired via a 3rd party. So I don’t think going around platforms would keep me as busy as I need to be.
I don’t find out what other notaries get paid or offered for orders. Not sure how that’s a thing. I did a signing yesterday and the borrower had to sign a document acknowledging a notary service fee of $175. I was paid $105. I don’t discuss those things with a signer or anyone else.
I don’t think I would handle a discrepancy such as you describe.
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I appreciate your perspective, and I definitely understand where you’re coming from.
Just to clarify a bit more on my situation—the title company raised the concern because the first notary did not show up for the appointment and there was no communication. As a result, they ended up with two different invoices for essentially the same assignment—one at $225 and mine at $150.
From my understanding, that’s what prompted them to step in. I was the one who ultimately stepped in, completed the signing, and ensured everything moved forward smoothly, so I believe they were trying to ensure fairness and consistency on their end given the circumstances.
I agree that in most cases we don’t get involved in what other notaries are paid, but this seemed to be more about the situation created by the no-show and lack of communication rather than a typical fee comparison.
That said, I do appreciate hearing how others approach these situations—it’s definitely helpful to see different perspectives.
they aren’t going to pay the no show anything. So that’s a rarely happens kind of deal.
That makes sense, and I agree it’s probably not typical.
In this case, I think what stood out to me was that the title company actually stepped in and advocated on my behalf once they saw the discrepancy. That’s not something you see often, so I did appreciate that they went to bat for me—especially since I was the one who completed the assignment after the no-show.
Definitely seems like more of a unique situation than the norm.
Unique, indeed. The fee difference might be due to distance & travel time for the first notary as that is a major factor in a profitable fee.
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