Witnesses! How is it, I wonder, that the lender/title/escrow doesn’t confer with the signers regarding their responsibility to procure witnesses for a signing they are involved with. It is the responsibility of the signers and their transaction handlers to arrange for witnesses, it seems to me.
How can a notary be expected to locate, qualify, transport and fairly compensate one or two people on short notice who have to be dressed and ready at all hours to sit around and take an oath and sign some documents totally alien to their life’s experience?
I know all about notaries who have identified some retired folks who they call upon for witnessing duties, but, c’mon. Apparently, these orders get done. Just not by me. I’m not angry about it - just perplexed.
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This is actually why I started keeping a small list of background checked witnesses in different areas because notaries keep running into this exact situation when a signing requires one.
I know this is frustrating! How often are you turning down signings due to a lack of witnesses? I saw someone state they have turned down over 30 signings last year alone.
I won’t be taking the time to keep a bank of background check witnesses in a 200 mile radius, sorry to say.
I completely understand! I only started keeping a list because I kept seeing notaries scrambling to find witnesses for signings or turning down assignments that required one, which basically leaves money on the table. Now when a witness is needed, I can just coordinate it so the notary doesn’t have to spend time searching.
Why does your witness need a background check? Just need to be over 18, not related and have an address.
If I see an order which states that the notary needs to provide a witness, I just don’t respond to it. That doesn’t officially count as “turning it down”, but I would turn down most of these jobs anyway, because of the low fee offered. The witness requirement is just a secondary reason.
Great question. You’re correct that legally a witness generally only needs to be over 18, not related to the signer, and able to provide an address.
Because I’m coordinating witnesses for notaries and professional signings, I chose to add a background check as an additional layer of professionalism and accountability. Notaries themselves go through background checks, and many signings take place in private homes or offices. Personally, I would not feel comfortable sending someone to meet a notary and signer if I had not at least verified who they are.
My background is in federal law enforcement and investigative work, so verification and due diligence are simply part of how I approach building this network.
It may not always be legally required, but it helps ensure the person showing up is reliable and adds a level of confidence for the notary and the client.
Are you stating the low fee offered on the notarization side?
I got one today that offered $50 for the signing AND the notary needed to provide a witness. Are they serious??? They didn’t even say that there would be extra pay for the witness. Even if they offered a decent fee, I wouldn’t do it. I just don’t need that kind of extra responsibility for peanuts in return.
$50 and they expect the notary to provide a witness too? That’s a lot of extra responsibility for very little pay. Just locating a witness can take time, so that fee really doesn’t make sense.
Which is why I ignored it. A little while later, I get a phone call from the same company. I knew what they wanted so I didn’t answer. They obviously couldn’t find anyone through their text blasts, so they started calling notaries on the phone.
I don’t blame you. If the fee doesn’t make sense, it’s not worth taking on the extra responsibility. I’ve seen that happen quite a bit where the text blast goes out and then they start calling when no one bites. If you ever run into a signing where the fee is reasonable but the client doesn’t have a witness available, feel free to reach out. I may be able to help locate one through the network I’ve built.
That’s a nice service, but they would need to pay a heck of a lot more for them than $25. Personally I don’t think they (SS or Title) care as long as it is witnessed per requirements and their address is listed. Also, it is the signer’s responsibility to to provide their own witness, not ours. We do it because they ask us, and expect that we have them on hand. I don’t allow my witness to sit at the table during a signing, rather sit in the living room or at another table and call them over when needed, or we sign those documents first that are marked, and they can go for a walk. I don’t think that is expected from any of us to provide a BGC on a witness.
You’re absolutely right that it’s ultimately the signer’s responsibility to provide their own witness, and many notaries handle it exactly the way you described. The background check isn’t meant to suggest it’s required, just an extra layer I chose to add since I’m coordinating witnesses to attend signings with notaries I may not personally know. My goal is simply to make it easier for a notary to confidently accept a signing when the client doesn’t have a witness available rather than having to scramble at the last minute. And of course the witness doesn’t need to sit through the entire signing. They can simply be called over when the documents requiring their signature are ready.
In Fl. The warranty deed needs 2 witnesses. Notary can be one. The mortgage does not require any witnesses.
I know Florida is one of the witness states.
FL requires witnesses on deeds of conveyance; by statute, mortgages to not require witnesses - however some counties have instituted their own regulations for recording and require mortgages to be witnesses. If you’re an out-of-state notary, best to check with hiring party and get their advice in writing in case there is kickback.
