Hi all. I am new. I did a signing today with two mistakes the processing center called about. But she sounded unsure if they were a big deal, but because the title company is not open today, she couldn’t check with them. Of course, I offered to go get them rectified asap. But since the person who called me seemed so unsure, I was just wondering if these are normal issues when doing these signings. 1) a non notorized document was signed with the middle initial of the signer. I did not catch that, unfortunately. All the rest of the docs did not have her middle initial (as it should have been).. 2) a witness transcribed their zip and mixed up 7 and 0, so he just wrote over the 7, making it a zero. As I say, she was unsure, so now I’m curios.
Also, when I get a hold of the signer, if the co-signer has already left, can I just have her cross out her middle initial and initial over it? I know that should funny, but the co signer may not be available for me to do a fresh doc? Thanks,
If it’s helpful I open every appointment covering how the signers are required to sign and date. I even put a post it in front of them with the eight digit date.
I review every page as it’s returned to me so an error can be corrected right then.
If you see a signer writing over immediately have them strike correct and initial.
Or pull the blank copy from the signer copy and re-do it.
Thank you. That helps so much. I guess it was really green of me to think it was just a zip code. But now I know! The middle initial thing I knew, but just didn’t catch that one. I haven’t done a lot of these, but this is the first mistake, so I’m kind of bummed. But thanks for your help, and thank you for responding so nicely an professionally. It helps to have a supportive environment when we are learning a lot of this on our own.
There’s a million little things that can go wrong or be overlooked or that need correction, etc., etc. I know because I’ve had 998,063 of ‘em myself. Here’s a few tips that move you along in the right direction:
watch for the signers when the get to chatting and forget where they are in the process and forget to cross a “t” or dot an “i” or miss signing with an initial or without or whatever. Keep your eyes on the work which you’ll learn to do over time. Then, before you leave the table, carefully review the entire package. Usually takes about two minutes or so and is worth every second. Don’t do the double check in the car or at a coffee house nearby as is often suggested in training sessions - that’s useless, almost. The table check is fine. Don’t be embarrassed if you discover a mistake you should have caught during the signing session. Happens all the time and less as time goes on. Pitchers don’t throw strikes every time, do they?
Don’t forget, when the papers get messy with corrections, simply pull out the duplicate page from the package you’ve prepared to leave with the signers and swap the funky document out for the clean one and have them re-sign. Be sure to put the correct document in the closing package.
I hate my errors (very few these days) and I really hate that dreaded phone call from the signing service saying I missed some silly check box or the date looks like a 7 instead of a 4 on the settlement statement or whatever. Just remember, you’re a professional and you’re in your learning curve and errors will happen. It passes quickly and you DO learn and improve if you take it seriously but not too seriously.
Just apply the fruits of the spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. You’ll be fine. Blessings!
Mistakes, although they can initially cause some concern, are actually fantastic learning experiences. They open doors for us to improve our skills and, in the long run, lead to much more success in our profession. I know this from experience. After making my first three mistakes and having to make those second trips, I developed a system that has worked really well for me. I started using page tags, and they have proven to be an incredibly helpful tool. They really help prevent mistakes and ensure that nothing gets overlooked. The most effective way to develop good habits and muscle memory is to thoroughly review everything, checking things not just twice, but even three times, before you ever think about leaving the signing table. I implemented this method, and I can say with confidence that it has made a huge difference, especially during the first hundred loan signings I completed.
I dont have advice on corrections other than, if you cross something out, re-sign and add initials. Im rather new at this myself, 3 years as a notary. I do have some pointers on a mortgage closing. Always Always check your signers ID, Always look at the signature and be 1000 strict from the way it is listed: include “AKA” or middle initials IF they are included under the line. As notaries, all we are concerned with (other than preventing fraud) is to be sure our client (mortgage company) gets everything they need on time. If the name under the line is different than the one shown on your sgniture disclosure page, make sure to add that signature to the disclosure. I started handing the signer the page to be signed and be as critical as possible… IE, “the D looks like an E, fix it plz” or “You went over the line and into the margin, I have a replacement page, plz lets sign again and stay between the lines”. Be sure your as meticulous with your signature as well. Be sure you put your Commission expiration date correctly. One thing I think we as notaries, we forget. These are Legal forms. What is signed is forever part of the file and if its wrong, somebody gets sued. Be sure its not you. And John is right, if you write over something know that its going to be kicked back. For docs that don’t require a notary, the mortgage company can send via email/fax to the signer and have them sign again without you. Notarized pages CANNOT be changed after your notary signature. Not by you, not by client, and not by closing agent. So be SURE that before you send scanbacks or drop to FedEx be 100% sure that everything is correct. I had an entire deal fall apart because I forgot to add the year in my commission expiration date. I told the mortgage company to add the date and oh boy what a hornets nest that stirred. I guess my best advice, double, triple and quadruple check your signing pages.
Mistakes will happen, the best you can do is minimize the the chances of mistakes. I used a cover page I created. It included signer names, address, if there were scan backs, signing service info, everything I needed for that signing. It also included a list of the documents I needed to notarize for that signing, as well as which signer and what type of notarization (i.e. acknowledgement or jurat.) When a document was signed and notarized I placed a horizontal mark next to the form name. After documents were signed, while at the table, I would go through the documents double checking signatures and dates and place a second vertical mark to indicate I’d double checked that notarized document.
Filling out the cover sheet helped me organize and focus at the table.
